Connecting the Other Side
by Ali-Aislin-Yuki-Li
Summary: When Bella goes to Emily's she meets Mallie, the Packs Guardian and their connection to the other side. Where the dead rest, nature spirits dwell and where the Tribal Ancestors watch over them. she can not phase but has the ability to read their minds in wolf form. how does she affect everything? Read and Find out! (horrible at summaries!)
1. Mallie

**Yo time for another story….ha-ha!**

**I no own nd if I did….oh if I did….**

**I JUST HAD TO GET THIS OUT OR I WOULD HAVE GONE INSANE!**

**Thank you.**

**The name Mallie is pronounced Mal-lee (only putting that because my cousins couldn't pronounce it.)**

* * *

Mallie watched her pack brothers enter the house.

"You guys hungry? Like I have to ask." Emily smiled at them then looked up at Bella.

"Who's this?" Mallie asked the boys.

"Bella Swan who else."

"Oh so you're the vampire girl?" Emily stated smiling.

"And you're the wolf girl." Bella said.

"Guess so I mean I'm engaged to one." Emily said.

"And this…" Embry grinned rubbing Mallie's hair. "Is our Pack Guardian."

The girl who was eating a muffin just gave a peace sign mouth full.

"Shut up!" Jared told him.

He went to get another muffin but Emily caught him. "Save some for your brothers!"

"Come on! Short-stack over here is on her third!"

"Short-stack didn't get breakfast this morning because Short-stacks alarm clock is broke and Short-stack had to go to crappy school!" She huffed at him.

Emily nodded. "And ladies first. Muffin Bella?"

"Uh sure…." Bella said but didn't move to take one.

"Leave it to Jacob to find a way around Sam's gag order." Mallie stated sighing.

"Uh he didn't say anything to me…" Bella frowned taking a muffin. (Finally.)

"It's a wolf thing. Alpha's orders get obeyed no matter what. Even Mallie has to obey Sam. Whether we want too or not. Oh and check this out we can hear each other's thoughts. Even Mallie can when we're in wolf form but she doesn't phase." Embry explained.

"Would you shut up?" Jared asked. "These are tribe secrets. Dammit this chick runs with vampires!"

"You can't run with vampires….because their fast." Bella said slightly awkwardly.

"Yeah?" Jared asked. "Well we're faster."

"I talk to the wolves in their heads and I'm the connection to the tribe's ancestors and spiritual protectors that includes the nature that surrounds us. I can talk to the alphas that have past and I'm as fast as them at running. So yeah; basically I talk to the wolf inside the boys and nature spirits and I run very, very fast and I'm still 100% mortal. And not a day over fourteen. Freaked out yet?" Mallie asked.

"You have no shame do you?" Jared asked her.

"None whatsoever; I am proud of my abilities. I'm a freak of nature. Hail!" The young girl stated.

"You're not the first monsters I've met…" Bella said shrugging.

"Jake's right your good with weird." Sam said entering the house.

"It's kinda creepy." Mallie stated.

"You can't say anything you talk to trees and dead people!" Embry said rolling his eyes.

"I'm the Packs guardian it's my job! You guys turn into over-sized Huskies and I'm the strange one?"

"Yes. Repeat you talk to dead people! Animals! Tribe spirits need I go on?"

"Uh…oh shut up!"

Sam rolled his eyes and kissed Emily on the lips then her scars.

"I'm eating!" Mallie groaned.

He pulled apart from Emily and turned Mallie's head to be looking down at her muffin. "Then eat and shut up."

Two minutes later Paul and Jacob stumbled in mock shoving each other and laughing.

Paul sat down on the table and turned to Bella. "Sorry."

Jacob scanned the room, his eyes stopping when he found Bella leaning, awkward and out of place, against the counter in the far corner of the kitchen.  
"Hey, Bells," he greeted her cheerfully. He grabbed two muffins as he passed the table and came to stand beside her. "Sorry about before," he muttered under his breath. "How are you holding up.'"  
"Don't worry, I'm okay. Good muffins." She picked hers back up and started nibbling again.  
"Oh, man!" Jared wailed, interrupting us.  
Bella looked up, and he and Embry were examining a fading pink line on Paul's forearm. Embry was grinning, exultant.  
"Fifteen dollars," he crowed reminding Jared of the bet they had, had on the ride over.  
Mallie laughed; a delightful sound that little kids have that seemed very out of place in the girl despite her small stature and doe like eyes. "Loser!" She told Jared who sulked.  
"Did you do that?" Bella whispered to Jacob, remembering the bet.  
"I barely touched him. He'll be perfect by sundown."  
"By sundown?" Bella looked at the line on Paul's arm. Odd, but it looked weeks old.  
"Wolf thing," Mallie explained.

"Oi ease dropper!" Jacob told her playfully.  
"Boo who."  
Bella nodded, trying to not look weirded out.  
"You okay?" She asked Jacob under her breath.  
"Not a scratch on me." His expression was smug.

"Hey, guys," Sam said in a loud voice, interrupting all the conversations going on in the small room.

Emily was at the stove, scraping the egg mixture around a big skillet, but Sam still had one hand touching the small of her back, an unconscious gesture.

"Jacob has information for us."  
Paul looked unsurprised.

Jacob must have explained this to him and Sam already.

Or they'd just heard his thoughts.  
"I know what the redhead wants." Jacob directed his words toward Jared, Mallie and Embry. "That's what I was trying to tell you before."

He kicked the leg of the chair Paul had settled into.  
"And?" Jared asked.  
Jacob's face got serious. "She is trying to avenge her mate only it wasn't the black-haired leech we killed. The Cullens got her mate last year, and she's after Bella now."  
"Say what now?" Mallie asked shocked looking over at Bella.  
Jared, Embry, and Emily stared at me with open-mouthed surprise.  
"She's just a girl," Embry protested.

"I didn't say it made sense. But that's why the bloodsucker's been trying to get past us. She's been heading for Forks."  
They continued to stare at her, mouths still hanging open, for a long moment.

Bella ducked her head.  
"Excellent," Jared finally said, a smile beginning to pull up the corners of his mouth.

"We've got bait." Both Jared and Mallie said at the same time.  
With stunning speed, Jacob yanked a can opener from the counter and launched it at Mallie's head.

Jared's hand flicked up faster than Bella would have thought possible, and he snagged the tool just before it hit the Packs guardians face.

"Bella is not bait."  
"You know what I mean," Jared said, unabashed.

"Personally I think it's an okay idea." Mallie shrugged.

"That's because you're a nutcase." Jacob told her.

"I would hit you…but way to much effort."  
"So we'll be changing our patterns," Sam said, ignoring their squabble.

"We'll try leaving a few holes, and see if she falls for it. We'll have to split up, and I don't like that. But if she's really after Bella, she probably won't try to take advantage of our divided numbers."

"We don't have long until Quil phases then you'll be spilt evenly. But for now you'll have to make do." Mallie said.

Everyone looked down. No one wanted the same fate for their friend.

"Well we won't count on that." Sam said. "Paul Embry and Jared will take the outer perimeter. Jacob and I the inner."

They nodded.

Sam soon explained that Jacob would prefer that she stayed in La Push as much as possible.

"What about Charlie?"

"March madness is still going." Jacob said. "Billy and Harry can keep Charlie down here when he's not at work. Mallie you think you can ask….or do whatever you do to look after Charlie?" Sam asked the girl.

"Damn straight I can."

Sam nodded at her then at Bella who still looked uneasy. "Don't worry." He said.

"Mallie never fails. But that's just what Jacob thinks is best but it's your decision. You weigh your own risks yourself. You saw this morning how easily dangerous things can get around here. If you chose to stay here we cannot guarantee your safety."

"I wouldn't hurt her." Jacob muttered.

Sam ignored him and Bella wondered why they kept a girl as young as Mallie around them if they worried so much about Bella's safety.

Then again maybe it's a guardian thing….

Whatever a guardian thing was.

"You'll be careful right?"

The pack (plus Mallie, Bella couldn't figure out if she counted as a pack member or not) burst out laughing.

Only Emily didn't laugh she met Bella's eyes; she understood she was as concerned as Bella for her fiancé and the pack (and Mallie)

"Food's ready." Emily announced.

The pack (and Mallie) leapt up and surrounded the dinning table that was so small Bella worried it would buckle under the weight of them.

They devoured food and honestly Bella never saw a girl put away so much food so fast….

Emily leaned against the counter in order to avoid bedlam.

She watched them affectionate eyes.

Bella stayed there for the rest of the day and was surprised to see Paul and Jared help Mallie with homework who was struggling with algebra.

To be honest it wasn't what Bella was expecting from a pack of werewolves and whatever Mallie was. (She still didn't really understand what a Pack Guardian was.)

But looking at them Jake watching TV with Embry; Jared and Paul bent over Mallie's copy trying to explain how to do the sum to the younger girl.

Emily and Sam were talking to each other while they did the dishes….

Bella realized this place; this house was a home and this Pack of werewolves; Emily and Mallie they were a family.

And for some strange reason. They were willing to let her into their world.

And Bella liked it.

* * *

**Hated the ending myself.**

**No flames please review!**


	2. Death

**I don't own Twilight and if I did….well you'll never know will you?**

* * *

Later Jacob took Bella back to Billy's house where Billy texted Charlie who arrived for dinner with two large pizzas.

Bella knew as soon as Charlie and she headed home Jacob would bolt off as a wolf to meet up with the Pack and their guardian the young (slightly creepy) Mallie.

Jacob and his brothers kept up a constant watch with Mallie helping when she could. (After all she was mostly human with a few special quirks.)

They'd chased her halfway to Canada the night before and according to Jacob who heard from Mallie she'll definitely try again.

Jacob walked her to her truck after dinner lingering by the window.

"Don't be afraid tonight." He told her. "We'll be out there watching. Once Sam makes sure Mallie won't sneak out tonight…."

"Wild child?" Bella asked trying for a laugh and failed.

Jacob shook his head. "Overly concerned."

"I won't worry about myself." Bella promised him.

"You're silly. Hunting vampires is fun. It's the best part of this whole mess." Jacob stated.

"If I'm silly then you're dangerously unbalanced."

"No. That's Short-stack." Jacob chuckled.

"Get some rest Bella. You look exhausted."

"I'll try."

Charlie honked the horn and Bella said her goodbyes.

"See you tomorrow. Come down first thing."

"I will."

Charlie followed Bella home who kept looking out at the forest knowing Jared, Embry, Paul and Sam were out there running in the night if Jacob had joined them yet she didn't know and maybe Sam buckled and allowed Mallie to come along?

Who knew?

At home Charlie stopped Bella. "What's going on? I thought Jacob was apart of a 'gang' and you two were fighting?"

"We made up."

"And the gang?"

"I don't know. Who can understand teenage boys? They're a mystery. I met Sam Uley and his fiancée Emily. They seem nice enough. And Mallie….I don't know her last name; small enough chocolate hair slightly wavy hint of caramel and doe eyes? They seem nice enough."

His face changed. "So Sam and Emily made it official? That's nice. Poor girl."

"What happened?"

"Mauled by a bear up north. During salmon spawning season. It was more then a year ago. Heard Sam was really messed up over it."

"That's horrible." I wonder how am felt every time he looked at Emily's face…

"And Mallie you say? Uh….Mallie…Amadahy; yeah Mallie Amadahy lost her parents when she was six. Car crash on the way to her dad's brother's place. Mallie was lucky Quil's mom she'd watch her that weekend or else she'd have been in the car with them. As far as I know she was staying in the spare room in Old Quil's….maybe she's staying with Sam and Emily now…donno." He shrugged and that was it on the subject.

Soon spring break arrived in Forks on Monday morning and that night Sam, Emily and Mallie joined Charlie and Bella for dinner at the Black's house.

Conversation flowed easily at the table with Billy talking with Mallie.

"You gonna be working on the boats this summer again Mal?" He asked.

She shrugged. "Depends. I like them and all….but you know. Busy times."

Billy nodded and continued eating the cake Emily brought over.

"You work with boats?" Charlie frowned.

"Boats, nothing at all….girl lives in water." Sam stated grinning.

"Guilty." She shrugged. Bella and Jacob skipped out early for some privacy but conversation continued on.

-WITH BELLA AND JACOB-

Jacob explained how he turned and about how Quil was actually his second cousin and how it was easier to phase for him.

"Why?"

"Because Quil and Ephraim Black were in the last pack. Levi Uley was the third. It's in my blood on both sides. I never had a chance like Quil doesn't have a chance. Besides Mallie can feel it. Maybe it's a guardian thing but she always knows when someone's going to phase. That's why I kept thinking I saw her around the Rez so much more then I usually did. She was making sure I didn't phase in public."

"Did Mallie have a relative in the last pack? A guardian I mean…."

"No. There hasn't been a…'Mallie' shall we say for a long time. That's what scared her so much I think. Seeing spirits and having them talk to you can really freak out a kid. Girl was totally alone until Sam turned and she had someone to talk too….it just…grew from there I think. The connection a wolf has with the guardian it's strange…." He sighed.

"Strange how?"

"Well…you feel the need to protect her. Like a baby sister or in Sam's case I guess a daughter being Alpha. Though I think she can handle herself….you can't help it…I don't know why….you just can't. Sometimes I want to kill her because she's such a smart-ass but if anything happened her I'd never forgive myself you know?"

Bella nodded. "What's the best part?"

"The best part…..the speed."

"How fast can you go?"

"Well we caught that bloodsucker….Laurent. I imagine that means more to you then someone else."

"When vampires run they turn almost turned invisible with speed."

"Kinda like Mallie then. But she burns out quickly so she tries not to run that often. Jared let's her sit on top of him. I don't think a day goes by she doesn't thank Old Quil for continuing to pay for gymnastic lessons." He chuckled.

"So, tell me something I don't know," he said. "Something about vampires. How did you stand it, being around them? Didn't it creep you out?"  
"No," She said curtly.  
Her tone made him thoughtful for a moment.  
"Say, why'd your bloodsucker kill that James, anyway?" He asked suddenly.  
"James was trying to kill me it was like a game for him. He lost. Do you remember last spring when I was in the hospital down in Phoenix?"  
Jacob sucked in a breath. "He got that close?"  
"He got very, very close." She stroked my scar. Jacob noticed, because he held the hand she moved.  
"What's that?" He traded hands, examining my right.

"This is your funny scar, the cold one." He looked at it closer, with new eyes, and gasped.  
"Yes, it's what you think it is," She said. "James bit me."  
His eyes bulged, and his face turned a strange, sallow colour under the russet surface.

He looked like he was about to be sick.  
"But if he bit you? Shouldn't you be?" He choked.  
"Edward saved me twice," I whispered. "He sucked the venom out you know, like with a rattlesnake."

Bella twitched as the pain lashed around the edges of the hole.  
But she wasn't the only one twitching.

She could feel Jacob's whole body trembling next to hers. Even the car shook.

"Careful Jake. Calm down."

"Yeah…." He muttered. "Calm."

"You okay?"

"Yeah almost. Did any of the Cullen's have special powers….like mind reading?"

Bella hesitated on that one. But gave in. "Jasper could. He could control emotions; calm people down and such…that would probably help Paul a lot. And Alice….Alice could tell the future but not absolutely. The things she saw changed when someone changed their decision; like she saw me dying and she'd seen me becoming one of them. Two things that didn't happen. And one that never would….."

The two continued their talk with Jacob comforting her about the Cullen's departure.

Over the next few days Bella tried to study at Billy's but the awkwardness was too much so by Wednesday she decided to try Emily's who was a cheerful woman who never sat still.

Bella drifted around her while she cleaned the house, cooked and tended to the garden.

Mallie flitted in and out. Coming in from school dumping her bag; changing clothes and leaving again barely exchanging a nod with Emily.

Bella asked if she found that rude.

"Of course not. Half the time I think she's not even in this world. In body but in soul and all that."

Sam came in often to check on her and that was Bella's queue to leave the lovey-dovey happy-happy crap was too much to bear.

Then came the morning that Jacob promised to take her cliff diving and when she arrived; Jacob wasn't there.

"Embry, Paul and Jared caught a fresh trail this morning. Sam and Jake took off to help. Sam's hopeful. She's wedged between them up in the mountains he think he might be able to finish this. Mallie's probably sitting in a circle of fire or something talking to them in her head or whatever…seeing what they see."

"Oh no Billy….oh no."

"You really like La Push that much?" Billy joked.

"Don't make jokes Billy. It's too scary for that."

"You're right. This one's tricky. But it's not as dangerous for them as you think it is. Sam knows what he's doing and the Pack have a guardian on their side. You're the one they worry about. The redhead doesn't want to fight them. She wants to get past them….and it's not working."

"How does Sam know what he's doing? He's only killed one vampire!"

"They know Bella. Nothing is ever forgotten. Everything they need to know has been past down for generations. And everything that wasn't was told through Mallie. The pack hasn't been as protected and strong for a long time. Don't worry."

Bella nodded. "I'm going to the beach!"

And at the beach….

She did something stupid.

She went cliff diving.

Alone; into the water.

Alone.

Did I mention alone?

Stupid human….

That left Jacob to pull her out of the water.

"Bella." He asked shakily.

"How long she been out?" The gruff voice of Sam asked.

"I don't know a few minutes?" Jacob said.

Bella felt a warm hand on her face but nut the scorching heat of the wolves a calm gentle welcoming heat that belonged to a person with smooth and small hands.

Mallie.

"She's breathing. She'll come round. Get her out of the cold though. I don't like the colour she's turning." Sam said.

"You think its okay to move her?"

"She didn't hurt her back or anything during the fall?"

"Uh I don't know…."

Then suddenly…."Jake?" A weak voice croaked.

"Bella!" Jake exclaimed. "Are you okay? Do you hurt anywhere?"

"J…j…just my throat."

"Let's get you out of here then." Jacob scooped her up into his arms like an empty box.

"You got her?"

"Yeah. I'll take it from here you two go back to the hospital and thanks Sam, Mallie."

"How did you find me?" She rasped.  
"I was searching for you," he told me. He was half-jogging through the rain, up the beach toward the road. "I followed the tire tracks to your truck, and then I heard you scream." He shuddered.

"Why would you jump, Bella? Didn't you notice that it's turning into a hurricane out here? Couldn't you have waited for me?"

Anger filled his tone as the relief faded.  
"Sorry," She muttered. "It was stupid."  
"Yeah, it was really stupid," he agreed, drops of rain shaking free of his hair as he nodded. "Look, do you mind saving the stupid stuff for when I'm around? I won't be able to concentrate if I think you're jumping off cliffs behind my back."  
"Sure," She agreed.

"No problem." Bella sounded like a chain-smoker.

She tried to clear my throat and then winced; the throat-clearing felt like stabbing a knife down there.

"What happened today? Did you find her?" It was her turn to shudder, though she wasn't so cold here, right next to his ridiculous body heat.  
Jacob shook his head. He was still more running than walking as he headed up the road to his house. "No. She took off into the water the bloodsuckers have the advantage there. That's why I raced home. I was afraid she was going to double back swimming. You spend so much time on the beach." He trailed off, a catch in his throat.  
"Sam came back with you is everyone else home, too?" Bella hoped they weren't still out searching for her.  
"Yeah. Sort of."  
She tried to read his expression, squinting into the hammering rain. His eyes were tight with worry or pain.  
The words that hadn't made sense before suddenly did. "You said hospital. Before, to Sam. Is someone hurt? Did she fight you?" Her voice jumped up an octave, sounding strange with the hoarseness.  
"No, no. When we got back, Em was waiting with the news. It's Harry Clearwater. Harry had a heart attack this morning."  
"Harry?" She shook my head, trying to absorb what he was staying. "Oh, no! Does Charlie know?"  
"Yeah. He's over there, too, with my dad."  
"Is Harry going to be okay?"  
Jacob's eyes tightened again. "It doesn't look so great right now."

-SAM AND MALLIE-

The car ride back to the hospital was silent Jared waiting outside the building for them two of them to arrive.

"Anything?" Mallie asked.

He shook his head and the two of them sighed.

She sat in the waiting area knees tucked up closing her eyes between Embry and Jared.

Leah Clearwater sat in the corner not moving just staring into space shoulders hunched.

The entire pack stayed there all night not sleeping. They didn't have the strength to sleep…it was early in the morning when the doctor came in and asked for immediate family.

Half an hour later Sue came out crying; Seth had silent tears running down his cheeks and Leah just stood there a face of pure agony and grief on her face.

"He's gone." She choked out and started to cry. "He's dead."

Charlie's face went white and tears welled up in Mallie's eyes; she was always welcome in the Clearwater house and sometimes worked on Harry's boat during the summers for extra pocket money.

Embry put an arm around her and she cried.

"Take her home." She heard Sam tell him and Paul who nodded and Embry picked the exhausted girl up and carried her to Paul's truck.

The car ride back to Emily's place was silent with tears rolling down Mallie's cheeks.

It got even worse a few hours later when Sam called Mallie's phone because he knew Embry and Paul's had died and that they'd be with Mallie.

"Hello?"

"Jacob's just been on the phone. There's a Cullen back in town." He said roughly.

Mallie groaned. And lay back down. She was stretched out on the couch a pillow in Embry's lap and her head lying on the pillow.

She handed Paul the phone. "I don't wanna hear it."

He went on the phone and nodded before sighing.

"Okay." He stood up. "We gotta go Short-stack you okay on your own?"

"I'll be fine."

He nodded and Embry stood up they pulled a blanket over the girl and left to meet the pack.

She rested closing her eyes. So much at once…..I really need a nap; a short one….okay no….

I need a long one.

Already half-asleep she turned off her phone. 'Night, night….'

* * *

**Like it? Loathe it? Love it? Tell me! (no flames!) **


	3. Funeral

**STILL NOT OWNING!**

* * *

The next morning she was up again and…mostly refreshed drinking hot chocolate when Jacob, Jared and Embry wandered in.

It was Harry's funereal day and Mallie was plain miserable. The sleep she had gotten did nothing for her….she was still exhausted.

"So... A Cullen?" She asked groaning. Vampires…always showing up at the worst times.

"Yeah. We're on the way to Bella's right now. You coming with us?" Embry asked.

"No!" Jared yelped.

"Jared…shut up. Yeah I'm coming." She nodded to Jacob and Embry.

"But-"

"Shut up."

"Mal-"

"Jared…."

"N-"

"Jared shut up I'm coming."

He sulked.

"Not gonna work." She told him.

His shoulders sagged.

Mallie had won; as usual.

When they arrived at the Swan residence Bella opened the door and stared at the Rabbit.

Jared behind the wheel; Mallie propped up between them and Embry in the passenger seat.

"Forgive the pun. But he's walking into the wolf's lair, den….whatever they live in." Mallie said.

Embry shook his head just for a tiny bit and sighed.

Bella's lip twitched and she mouthed something. "Chicken."

Isabella Swan locked eyes with Jared and then Embry before resting on Mallie….who was the queen of silent glares.

They went inside and Bella shut the door.

They pulled out of the driveway and headed back to La Push.

Minutes later Mallie suddenly flinched.

"You okay?" Embry said instantly.

"Jacob's phased…..argh!" She clutched her head. "Oh no!" She groaned.

"Bella's gone….she ran off with Alice Cullen."

The boys braked. "She did what?" Embry asked mouth dropping.

"He's angry. I'll talk to him." She unbuckled her seatbelt.

"Oh no! No! No! No! No….NO!" Jared shouted grabbing her hand. "He's angry. He could lash out!" He told her panicked.

"He won't hurt me. He….can't hurt me Jared."

"But…." He began but Embry gently pried his hand off of hers.

"Half an hour. You can't find him get your ass back to Sam and Emily's for the funeral."

She nodded. "Thanks Embry." Quickly she kissed Jared's cheek.

"I'll be fine." She told him smiling softly before kissing Embry's cheek.

"She got you whipped man." Embry stated as Mallie opened the Rabbit's trunk taking out the backpack that consisted of a pair of jean shorts and underwear for Jacob.

"Shut up. She's had you wrapped around her little finger ever since you looked into those doe eyes." Jared grumbled.

"You have no idea." Embry said shaking his head. "But I don't get your protectiveness sure we're all protective but you're just….insane. And you already have Kim." Embry frowned.

"She was there." Jared muttered turning on the car again. "For all of you she arrived after you phased but for me. She arrived exactly the same time I phased. Mallie was the first thing I saw as a wolf…."

"Oh…."

Jared nodded and they continued back to La Push in silence.

-THE FOREST-

As soon as Mallie made it deep enough into the forest she whistled.

Well…she couldn't howl?

A few minutes later…

"_Mallie?"_

"_Jake? Hey bro…"  
"Mallie…it hurts."_

"_I know; I know….please, where are you?"_

"_You know that lake? A few miles up the mountain?"_

"_Give me a few minutes. I'll be there." _

And true as her word she was there. Jacob still in wolf form was lying down head resting in his paws and his ears picked up at the scent of Mallie.

"Hey Jake." She whispered.

He whimpered. _"It hurts…."_

Slowly she held a hand out; he lifted his head and rubbed his head against her hand.

The wolf stood up and slowly walked two small steps toward her…before putting his head around her neck in a weird wolf hug.

He was shaking; his tail low if he was human he'd be crying.

"Jakey…." She spoke in a quiet voice. "Jake I'm sorry…."

"_Mallie…."_

"Jake; I know you love her and what she's done I won't forgive her….but you can do so much better. Please Jacob Black. Please Jake. Please brother. Snap out of it. We'll go back to Sam and Emily's we'll get through today and then we'll deal with Charlie and the pack and Bella."

"_Okay….Okay. Get on. We'll go back home. Jared's probably climbing the walls."_

"Okay. Jacob promise me something…."

"_Anything."_

"For today. Forget about Bella Swan. And remember that you are Jacob Black. The Beta of the La Push wolf pack. The grandson of a chief….promise me…that today you don't know Isabella Swan. Tomorrow…tomorrow we'll sort this."

"_Okay…I don't know how I'm gonna do this…but okay." _

Mallie mounted the giant russet wolf that in turn bolted into the forest and down the mountain.

The pack was waiting for them when they walked into the front garden of Emily's house. Mallie pasted Jacob the backpack who took it between his teeth.

"Go change."

The wolf turned and trotted behind a tree.

"How is he?" Sam asked her.

She sighed. "He's heartbroken. But for today….he'll bear it for Billy, for Sue, Leah and Seth, for Charlie and for himself. Today's about Harry. Bella Swan. She's not important right now….but tomorrow….be ready." She looked up at the sky. "Tomorrow he's gonna break...what Bella did was damage him by running off…." She looked at her pack brothers. "And I'm never going to forgive what she's done to my….our brother."

Sam nodded. "Go on inside." He told her softly. "Funeral starts in an hour."

She sighed and walked inside.

Jacob stood silent; badly hidden pain etched on his face during the entire funeral.

But Mallie was a mess…as soon as she saw the coffin she cried. Silent tears welling up in her eyes.

One by one the immediate family members spoke about their father and husband…then Billy spoke about his best friend followed by Charlie who still did not know of his daughter's disappearance.

The pack paid their final respects to a great man…father…husband and council member.

Harry Clearwater….Rest in Peace.

The next day; Jacob broke. He destroyed most of the furniture in his room and his thoughts on patrol was agonizing.

He snapped at anyone and everyone including Mallie oh hell especially Mallie.

Who just sat there and took it; letting Jacob get his heartbroken angry tantrum out.

"Why?" Embry asked her one afternoon. It was their turn to go shopping in Port Angeles.

"I'm the Guardian Jared. I'd do anything to make any one of you guys feel better. I'm more then just a freak of nature who talks to….well nature. I'm your friend. Your sister…I'm anything you want me to be."

"You're not." Embry blurted out. "You're not a freak of nature. You're Mallie. You let over six foot males who turn into wolves shout at you for hours. You clam us down. You're our little sister. You hate maths. You know your way around a boat better then anyone I know. Even Billy. Mallie….you're perfect in your own way. Never let anyone else tell you your not."

She looked up at Embry and nodded suddenly hugging the male. "What book did you read that from?"

"It was a movie actually. How about we check this crap out and go to the movies? My treat."

She grinned slowly and nodded.

Suddenly life just got a bit brighter.

* * *

**Like it?**

**This chapter was for Lightbabe! **

**So any ideas where I should take this?**

**Thanks review!**


	4. Chase

**I do not own.**

* * *

By the time school started again Jake though still depressed had brightened up again…slightly….at least he had masked his pain more during patrols.

Quil had joined the pack in August with Mallie finding him like she did with all the wolves when he phased back on the floor panting and naked.

Totally unfazed (pun intended!) she just handed him a pair of jean shorts and took him back to Sam and Emily's to meet the pack.

She finally got to meet Kim; Jared's imprint from his school.

Her eyes lit up when she saw Mallie hugging the very surprised girl instantly.

"You're Mallie right?"

"Yeah; it'd be rather awkward for you if I wasn't!" Mallie grinned.

"You had to be! Jared always talks about the annoying little sister we call Short-Stack…."

"Remind me to spike his soda with vinegar."

Kim grinned. She was good for Jared; kinda shy but very lovable. They got on well and Kim soon asked the question Emily did.

"What's it like to talk to….you know?"

"The dead? Nature? Tribal ancestors? It's comforting. When I didn't know what I was it was terrifying. Trees talking to me and dead people promising to keep me safe…creepy stuff…."

"Have you ever…spoken to the Third Wife?"

This was something that not even Jared or Embry had asked about.

Her face softened. "She's the one who told me to go to Sam Uley. She'd like…someone I can talk too. Her daughter was a guardian."

"Really? Did she get imprinted on by a wolf?"

"It takes a while. For a guardian to be imprinted on you need….something to happen you don't just look and them and now like you usually do. You have to feel like you're going to lose them…you have to feel fear for them and then you imprint. It's weird and no knows the reason why but it is what it is." She explained.

"You got a strange life." Kim stated.

"What? Live with a couple that is to in love to be healthy be constantly around very attractive boys whose body temperature is sky high who also turn into over-sized Huskies and talk to dead people? What's strange about that?"

Kim just laughed.

~LAPUSHWOLFPACK~

It was a Saturday night when Victoria was spotted.

Mallie had joined them as they weren't expecting her return so quickly with the Cullen's around.

Mallie had taken up practicing running over the summer and now could keep running with the wolves and if she got tired she hitched a ride on one of the wolves.

Victoria's red hair flashed in the forest as the wolves caught up to her.

The Cullen's on the other side of the treaty line.

"She'll get away!" They heard Esme the motherly leech shout.

"No she won't!"

They kept running beside the river leaping from rock to rock.

"EMMETT NO!"

Mallie slipped on a rock and had paused for the briefest moments before looking up in horror.

The biggest Cullen leaped over the treaty line and was flying toward Mallie; his jump had been poorly thought out obviously if a vampire that are supposed to have 'grace' can't miss a bleeding five foot female.

"Ugh!" She gasped.

Paul jumped through the air and caught him throwing him over the treaty line and into the river.

Emmett came up snarling at growling at Paul who in turn bared his teeth and barked.

"Paul!" Mallie snapped.

The wolf looked at her ears picking up. "Go! Leave him and go!"

He barked twice and took off into the forest.

The Cullen's stared at the human who in turn glared at them.

A wolf speeded to a stop beside her obviously distressed. He whimpered and nuzzled her neck.

"I'm fine…." She told him. "I'm fine."

The blond leech growled and snarled at Mallie. Sam almost instantly appeared snarling as well as the wolf in front of Mallie stood protectively in front of the girl.

Sam and Carlisle the fatherly leech spoke with Jasper the weird scarred leech controlling the emotions of the pack.

Sam and Carlisle agreed to track Victoria and not each other. Sam nodded in wolf form to the wolf standing beside Mallie still nuzzling his head in her neck. Stance protective.

'_get her home."_

Mallie mounted the wolf who sped off into the forest and away from the Cullen coven.

-MONDAY AT SCHOOL-

Bella had returned from Florida and arrived at school to see Jacob leaning against his motorbike waiting for them.

"You could have called us," Edward said in a steel-hard voice.  
"Sorry," Jacob answered, his face twisting into a sneer. "I don't have any leeches on my speed dial."  
"You could have reached me at Bella's house, of course."  
Jacob's jaw flexed, and his brows pulled together. He didn't answer.  
"This is hardly the place, Jacob. Could we discuss this later?"  
"Sure, sure. I'll stop by your crypt after school." Jacob snorted. "What's wrong with now?"  
Edward looked around pointedly, his eyes resting on the witnesses who were just barely out of hearing range.

A few people were hesitating on the sidewalk, their eyes bright with expectation. Like they were hoping a fight might break out to alleviate the tedium of another Monday morning.

I saw Tyler Crowley nudge Austin Marks, and they both paused on their way to class.  
"I already know what you came to say," Edward reminded Jacob in voice so low that she could barely make it out. "Message delivered. Consider us warned."  
Edward glanced down at Bella for a fleeting second with worried eyes.  
"Warned?" She asked blankly. "What are you talking about?"  
"You didn't tell her?" Jacob asked, his eyes widening with disbelief. "What, were you afraid she'd take our side?"  
"Please drop it, Jacob," Edward said in an even voice.  
"Why?" Jacob challenged.  
Bella frowned in confusion. "What don't I know? Edward?"  
Edward just glared at Jacob as if he hadn't heard her.  
"Jake?"  
Jacob raised his eyebrow at her. "He didn't tell you that his big . . . brother crossed the line Saturday night?" he asked, his tone thickly layered with sarcasm. Then his eyes flickered back to Edward. "Paul was totally justified in -"  
"It was no-man's land!" Edward hissed. "And it was an accident!"  
"Was not! He aimed for Mallie!"

"Emmett and Paul?" She whispered.

Paul was Jacob's most volatile pack brother. He was the one who'd lost control that day in the woods - the memory of the snarling gray wolf was suddenly vivid in her head.

And dear god Mallie…the little sweet guardian….completely MORTAL Mallie.  
"What happened? Were they fighting?" Her voice strained higher in panic. "Why? Did Paul get hurt? Oh my god is Mallie okay?"  
"No one fought," Edward said quietly, only to Bella. "No one got hurt. Don't be anxious."  
Jacob was staring at them with incredulous eyes.

"You didn't tell her anything at all, did you? Is that why you took her away? So she wouldn't know that -?"  
"Leave now." Edward cut him off mid-sentence, and his face was abruptly frightening - truly frightening. For a second, he looked like . . . like a vampire. He glared at Jacob with vicious, unveiled loathing.  
Jacob raised his eyebrows, but made no other move. "Why haven't you told her?"

Bella thought during the silence that followed and suddenly gasped. "She…she came back for me…"

"It's okay. Its fine I'd never let her near you…does that answer your question mongrel?"

"She has a right to know. It's her life."

"Do you really think hurting her will protect her?" Edward asked.

"She's tougher then you think. She's been through worse."

Edward cringed.

"That's funny." Jacob said

Jacob kept thinking off all the bad times from when he left Bella.

"What are you doing to him?"

"Nothing Bella…..Jacob just has a good memory."

"Stop whatever your doing."

"Fine. It's not my fault I have a good memory anyway."

A few minutes later the principal showed up and ordered Jacob off the grounds that left on the motorbike he had built with Bella.

"Anything?" Mallie asked him when he arrived home the girl hadn't gone to school today for reasons unknown… (Tired and lazy) so she was alone in the house.

"Nope….nothing at all…" He told her grouchily before heading upstairs to the spare room for some sleep.

-IN CLASS-

Bella scribbled a note to Edward.

**What happened? Tell me everything. And screw the protecting me crap, please.**  
She shoved the note at Edward.

He sighed, and then began writing.

It took him less time than her, though he wrote an entire paragraph in his own personal calligraphy before he slipped the paper back.  
Bella frowned at the letters on the page. **Alice saw that Victoria was coming back. **

**I took you out of town merely as a precaution - there was never a chance that she would have gotten anywhere close to you.**

**Emmett and Jasper very nearly had her, but Victoria seems to have some instinct for evasion. **

**She escaped right down the Quileute boundary line as if she were reading it from a map. **

**It didn't help that Alice's abilities were nullified by the Quileute's' involvement. **

**To be fair, the Quileute's might have had her, too, if we hadn't gotten in the way. **

**The big gray one thought Emmett was over the line, and he got defensive it didn't help that Emmett had jumped right over the girl…Mallie scaring the wolves half to death.**

**Of course Rosalie reacted to that, and everyone left the chase to protect their companions. **

**Carlisle and Jasper got things calmed down before it got out of hand.**

**But by then, Victoria had slipped away. That's everything.****  
**

All of them had been in on it - Emmett, Jasper, Alice, Rosalie, and Carlisle. Maybe even Esme, though he hadn't mentioned her.

And then Paul and the rest of the Quileute pack hell even Mallie, young again COMPLETELY MORTAL Mallie.

It might so easily have turned into a fight, pitting her future family and her old friends against each other.

Any one of them could have been hurt.

She imagined the wolves would be in the most danger, but picturing tiny Alice next to one of the huge werewolves, fighting. .

Or Mallie standing defenceless against Emmett or Jasper…  
She shuddered

* * *

**Like it? So that's how you imprint on a guardian and omg Emmett watch where your jumping!**

**Xoxox review**


	5. Imprint

**Do not own Twilight.**

* * *

Bella snuck out and headed to La Push and that's where she saw Jacob who hugged her (Bear Hug!) nearly killing her in the process.

She let him explain his side of the story on the beach a while later.

"Now you know the whole story," She concluded.

"So it's your turn to talk. What happened while I was with my mom this weekend?"

She knew Jacob would give her more details than Edward had. He wasn't afraid of scaring her.  
Jacob leaned forward, instantly animated.

"So Embry, Mallie and Quil and I were running patrol on Saturday night, just routine stuff, when out of nowhere - bam!"

He threw his arms out, impersonating an explosion.

"There it is - a fresh trail, not fifteen minutes old. Sam wanted us to wait for him, but I didn't know you were gone, and I didn't know if your bloodsuckers were keeping an eye on you or not. So we took off after her at full speed, but she'd crossed the treaty line before we caught up. We spread out along the line, hoping she'd cross back over." It was frustrating, let me tell you."

He wagged his head and his hair - growing out from the short crop he'd adopted when he'd joined the pack - flopped into his eyes.

"We ended up too far south. The Cullens chased her back to our side just a few miles north of us. Would have been the perfect ambush if we'd known where to wait."  
He shook his head, grimacing now.

"That's when it got dicey. Sam and the others caught up to her before we did, but she was dancing right along the line, and the whole coven was right there on the other side. The big one, what's-his-name -"  
"Emmett."  
"Yeah, him. He made a lunge for her, but that redhead is fast! He flew right behind her and almost rammed into Mallie. Though she was supposed to go home she couldn't you know? If the redhead doubled back and ran into Mallie alone…you know so she had to come with us anyway Emmett nearly squashed her' scaring her shitless though she won't admit it and Paul was the closest wolf to her and well… So, Paul . . . well, you know Paul."  
""Yeah."  
Lost his focus. Can't say that I blame him - the big bloodsucker was right on top of him. He sprang - hey, don't give me that look. The vampire was on our land and he nearly killed Mallie."

"So Sam and the head vamp agreed that Victoria was the priority, and we started after her again. Carlisle gave us the line, so that we could follow the scent properly, but then she hit the cliffs just north of Makah country, right where the line hugs the coast for a few miles. She took off into the water again. The big one and the calm one wanted permission to cross the line to go after her, but of course we said no."  
"Good. I mean, you were being stupid, but I'm glad. Emmett's never cautious enough. He could have gotten hurt."  
"Emmett could have gotten hurt? Did you miss out the fact that he nearly CRUSHED Mallie?"

"No I didn't I just…"  
Jacob snorted. "So did your vampire tell you we attacked for no reason and his totally innocent coven -"  
"No," She interrupted. "Edward told me the same story, just without quite as many details."

"Huh…."

"You know Sam's mad at you?"

"Me? Oh he thinks they'd have stayed away…"

"No he feels sort of betrayed that you'd let them back into your life after everything they'd done to you ya know?"

They argued for a few moments as usual before Bella changed the subject.

"How is everyone? Sam and Emily? Embry? Mallie? And Quil…"

"Ah Quil."

"I'm sorry."

"Don't tell him that."

"What?"

"He's totally jazzed. He's not looking for pity."

"He thinks it's awesome now that he knows what's going on and he's got his friends back."

"He likes it?"

"Honestly most of them do. There are good sides to this. The speed. The freedom. The strength the sense of….family. Especially for Mallie since she's never really had a family before. Sam and I are the only ones who ever felt bitter. Sam's over it so I'm the cry baby now…"

"Why?"

"Well."

And so he explained….about Leah and how he discovered he was a wolf and….Mallie.

"They were friends instantly. Mallie is completely unaffected by our heat and all that jazz...when Sam met Emily one of the first things he did when they got together was introduce her to Short-stack. A few months later just before Jared joined the pack she moved into Emily and Sam's place…"

And then came the bombshell.

Jacob.

Wasn't.

Aging.

After that drama-rama happened the next one followed.

Learning about Imprinting.

About how no one could control it.

"Sam did love Leah. But when he saw Emily, that didn't matter anymore. Sometimes . . . we don't exactly know why . . . it's a bit harder when it comes to Mallie but she's just awkward. We find our mates that way." His eyes flashed back to her, his face reddening. "I mean . . . our soul mates."  
"What way? Love at first sight?" Bella snickered.  
Jacob wasn't smiling. His dark eyes were critical of her reaction. "It's a little bit more powerful than that. More absolute."  
"Sorry," Bella muttered. "You're serious, aren't you?"  
"Yeah, I am."  
"Love at first sight? But more powerful?" Her voice still sounded dubious, and he could hear that.  
"It's not easy to explain. It doesn't matter, anyway." He shrugged indifferently. "You wanted to know what happened to Sam to make him hate the vampires for changing him, to make him hate himself. And that's what happened. He broke Leah's heart. He went back on every promise he'd ever made her. Every day he has to see the accusation in her eyes, and know that she's right."  
He stopped talking abruptly, as if he'd said something he hadn't meant to.  
"How did Emily deal with this? If she was so close to Leah . . . ?" Sam and Emily were utterly right together, two puzzle pieces, shaped for each other exactly. Still . . . how had Emily gotten past the fact that he'd belonged to someone else? Her sister, almost.  
"She was real angry, in the beginning. But it's hard to resist that level of commitment and adoration." Jacob sighed.

"And then, Sam could tell her everything. There are no rules that can bind you when you find your other half. You know how she got hurt?"  
"Yeah." The story in Forks was that she was mauled by a bear, but she was in on the secret.  
Werewolves are unstable, Edward had said. The people near them get hurt.  
"Well, weirdly enough, that was sort of how they resolved things. Sam was so horrified, so sickened by himself, so full of hate for what he'd done. . . . He would have thrown himself under a bus if it would have made her feel better. He might have anyway, just to escape what he'd done. He was shattered. . . . Then, somehow, she was the one comforting him, and after that. . . ."  
Jacob didn't finish his thought, and she sensed the story had gotten too personal to share.  
"Poor Emily," He whispered. "Poor Sam. Poor Leah. . . ."  
"Yeah, Leah got the worst end of the stick," he agreed. "She puts on a brave face. She's going to be a bridesmaid."

"Has it happened to you? The love at first sight thing?"

"Nope." Jacob muttered. "Sam and Jared are the only ones.

"How'd it turn out for Jared?"

"No drama there. It was just a girl he'd sat next to in school every day for a year and never looked at twice. And then, after he changed, he saw her again and never looked away. Kim was thrilled. She'd had a huge crush on him. She'd had his last name tacked on to the end of hers all over in her diary." He laughed mockingly.  
She frowned. "Did Jared tell you that? He shouldn't have."  
Jacob bit his lip. "I guess I shouldn't laugh. It was funny, though."  
"Some soul mate."  
He sighed. "Jared didn't tell us anything on purpose. I already told you this part, remember?"  
"Oh, yeah. You can hear each other's thoughts, but only when you're wolves, right?"

"Yup with Mallie as well….never forget that lunatic."

"How is Mallie? After…"

"Oh that. She's fine." Jacob shrugged again. "The big leech scared her though. Mallie can fight in her own way. Nature wouldn't just let her die…..and hell she's as fast as heck now…but the fact he was just lunging at her for no reason freaked her out. Paul's reaction was only natural you know….we can't just let her die."

Bella nodded.

She understood.

~LAPUSHWOLFPACK~

"You'll have to tell them sooner or later." She told him.

He sighed and nodded. "They're gonna kill me."

"They won't kill you exactly….Jared might break some bones in your body but you'll be fine."

He groaned and rested his head on her shoulder. He kissed her neck briefly. "Don't even go there."

She looked at him smiling softly. "They'll understand. They know the legends."

"So? They're werewolves. They're volatile and completely bipolar…..look at what happened during the weekend. Paul went ape-shit."

"He didn't just go crazy because of me. He went crazy because he was over the line."

"Doubt it."

She sighed. He was running a hand up and down her arm.

"They know something's up."

"They always do." She agreed.

The two sat on a cliff over looking the sea which for once was calm. The sun reached them up here lighting up the world and home they'd sworn to protect.

"Sam will need to know first."

"Hm; can we wait….until Jacob's in a more stable place at least? With Bella and...The Cullens' return…let's not forget what the heck is going on in Seattle…"

He nodded. "Yeah…we wait. But for now let's just…forget."

She smiled and nodded. "For now we forget…."

* * *

**Uh! What's going on?**

**Review people!**


	6. Story-telling

**Still do not own.**

* * *

As everyone went insane about Quil's imprint….Mallie sat and watched it all.

She sighed and listened to Emily babble on worried; Sam try and calm her down; Jared feel sorry for Quil….Paul finding it hilarious and Embry just sit with her and watch it all.

"I don't get the point of the pack going up in havoc." She said suddenly. "I know someone. On the Otherside who imprinted on his best friends daughter when she was less then three hours old." She stated yawning.

"Who do you talk too?" Kim asked smiling.

"It varies."

Now this was an interesting topic. One that the pack had never really asked about.

"To talk to the dead you need to understand the dead. To enter their world they have to want you too." Her eyes shined as she spoke of the Other Side.

"It doesn't matter what genes you have to be a guardian. I mean it doesn't come from one bloodline. You do need the werewolf gene though. That's a given. But traditionally if you looked at the legends or if well you're me you talked to the dead you'll know they're usually connected to an Ateara. So the Third Wife's daughter married an Ateara passing the gene or whatever onto her children. It has come up in other Quileute's usually from the Uley line and only once the Black line which was the last guardian. If it's not an Ateara who gets the gene like the Third Wife's daughter they usually marry into the Ateara line or someone who got the werewolf gene through the Ateara's." She explained.

"Huh….." Jared said. "Cool so which one are you? Black, Ateara or Uley?"

"Don't know. It came from my mom anyway because dad is from another tribe. But mom was adopted and she never cared to track down her parentage. I could be related to Quil which is the most likely option….I could be related to Sam and I could be a Black. But I don't know."

The pack went silent until..."So we could be cousins?" Quil asked.

"For all I know we could be first cousins." Mallie nodded.

"Awesome!" He grinned his happiness was contagious.

"Do you want to know?" Sam asked.

"To be honest. Though Ateara is the best option to go with. Uley is very likely."

"Why?" Sam asked.

"I don't know. The odds of me being a Black and having the connection I have with the Otherside it's unheard of. The last guardian didn't no couldn't control her abilities because it had never been in the family before. The longer the line is the best control you have."

They nodded.

"That's complicated." Embry stated suddenly making her giggle.

"Yeah. You have no idea." She told them.

They chuckled.

Mallie sure did know how to lighten the mood and give them something to think about….

~LAPUSHWOLFPACK~

Mallie saw Bella for the first time since she left that day for god knows where with Alice Cullen.

Mallie had suffered (willingly) sixty-four days of Jacob's screaming at her until he broke down in tears on the beach.

Bella sat next to Jacob talking briefly with people.

Kim, Emily, Seth….blah, blah, blah.

When Bella and Jacob came into view she was greeted with Embry shouting.

"Hey vampire girl!"

And a kiss on the cheek from Quil.

Other than a few teasing complaints - mostly by Paul - about keeping the bloodsucker stench downwind.

Bella was treated like someone who belonged.  
Expect by Mallie who looked at Jacob for a few seconds before muttering. "He's pathetic." Loud enough for Bella to hear.  
It wasn't just kids in attendance, either.

Billy was here, his wheelchair stationed at what seemed the natural head of the circle. Beside him on a folding lawn chair, looking quite brittle was Quil's ancient, white-haired grandfather, Old Quil.

Sue Clearwater, widow of Charlie's friend Harry, had a chair on his other side; her two children, Leah and Seth, were also there, sitting on the ground like the rest of them.

This surprised her, but all three were clearly in on the secret now.

From the way Billy and Old Quil spoke to Sue, it sounded to Bella like she'd taken Harry's place on the council.

Did that make her children automatic members of La Push's most secret society?

The whole pack was there; - Paul, Sam, Jacob, Embry, Quil, Emily, Mallie and Kim Jared's imprint.

Bella at first thought Kim was a bit plain but after a while she couldn't find anything plain about her.

The way Jared looked at the shy female like she was the most beautiful thing in the world.

And to him; she was.

She also observed Embry who was sitting next to Mallie.

Now from being around so many loved up vampires Bella noticed some things.

They were sitting so close together, the girl was obviously tired and he'd wrapped a blanket then an arm around her; with Mallie resting her head against his shoulder looking though tired content and happy.

None of the rest of the pack seemed to notice how close they were….

She joked with Seth across the bonfire with Seth being fourteen nearly fifteen only a few months to a year older then the girl. They had a nice relationship.

"The Quileutes have been a small people from the beginning," Billy said. "And we are a small people still, but we have never disappeared. This is because there has always been magic in our blood. It wasn't always the magic of shape-shifting - that came later. First, we were spirit warriors."

Mallie smiled her doe eyes reflecting the dancing flames before her.

"In the beginning, the tribe settled in this harbour and became skilled ship builders and fishermen. But the tribe was small, and the harbour was rich in fish. There were others who coveted our land, and we were too small to hold it. A larger tribe moved against us, and we took to our ships to escape them.  
"Kaheleha was not the first spirit warrior, but we do not remember the stories that came before his. We do not remember who the first to discover this power was, or how it had been used before this crisis. Kaheleha was the first Great Spirit Chief in our history. In this emergency, Kaheleha used the magic to defend our land.  
"He and all his warriors left the ship - not their bodies, but their spirits. Their women watched over the bodies and the waves, and the men took their spirits back to our harbor.  
"They could not physically touch the enemy tribe, but they had other ways. The stories tell us that they could blow fierce winds into their enemy's camps; they could make a great screaming in the wind that terrified their foes. The stories also tell us that the animals could see the spirit warriors and understand them; the animals would do their bidding.  
"Kaheleha took his spirit army and wreaked havoc on the intruders. This invading tribe had packs of big, thick-furred dogs that they used to pull their sleds in the frozen north. The spirit warriors turned the dogs against their masters and then brought a mighty infestation of bats up from the cliff caverns. They used the screaming wind to aid the dogs in confusing the men. The dogs and bats won. The survivors scattered, calling our harbor a cursed place. The dogs ran wild when the spirit warriors released them. The Quileutes returned to their bodies and their wives, victorious.  
"The other nearby tribes, the Hohs and the Makahs, made treaties with the Quileutes. They wanted nothing to do with our magic. We lived in peace with them. When an enemy came against us, the spirit warriors would drive them off.  
"Generations passed. Then came the last Great Spirit Chief, Taha Aki. He was known for his wisdom, and for being a man of peace. The people lived well and content in his care.  
"But there was one man, Utlapa, who was not content."

Mallie flinched. No Utlapa's spirit was not a pleasant one to encounter according to previous guardian's he'd been banned by the 'Higher Orders' from messing with Guardians.

"Utlapa was one of Chief Taha Aki's strongest spirit warriors - a powerful man, but a grasping man, too. He thought the people should use their magic to expand their lands, to enslave the Hohs and the Makahs and build an empire.  
"Now, when the warriors were their spirit selves, they knew each other's thoughts. Taha Aki saw what Utlapa dreamed, and was angry with Utlapa. Utlapa was commanded to leave the people, and never use his spirit self again. Utlapa was a strong man, but the chief's warriors outnumbered him. He had no choice but to leave. The furious outcast hid in the forest nearby, waiting for a chance to get revenge against the chief.

"Even in times of peace, the Spirit Chief was vigilant in protecting his people. Often, he would go to a sacred, secret place in the mountains. He would leave his body behind and sweep down through the forests and along the coast, making sure no threat approached.

"One day when Taha Aki left to perform this duty, Utlapa followed. At first, Utlapa simply planned to kill the chief, but this plan had its drawbacks. Surely the spirit warriors would seek to destroy him, and they could follow faster than he could escape. As he hid in the rocks and watched the chief prepare to leave his body, another plan occurred to him.

"Taha Aki left his body in the secret place and flew with the winds to keep watch over his people. Utlapa waited until he was sure the chief had travelled some distance with his spirit self.

"Taha Aki knew it the instant that Utlapa had joined him in the spirit world, and he also knew Utlapa's murderous plan. He raced back to his secret place, but even the winds weren't fast enough to save him. When he returned, his body was already gone. Utlapa's body lay abandoned, but Utlapa had not left Taha Aki with an escape - he had cut his own body's throat with Taha Aki's hands.

"Taha Aki followed his body down the mountain. He screamed at Utlapa, but Utlapa ignored him as if he were mere wind.

"Taha Aki watched with despair as Utlapa took his place as chief of the Quileutes. For a few weeks, Utlapa did nothing but make sure that everyone believed he was Taha Aki. Then the changes began - Utlapa's first edict was to forbid any warrior to enter the spirit world. He claimed that he'd had a vision of danger, but really he was afraid. He knew that Taha Aki would be waiting for the chance to tell his story. Utlapa was also afraid to enter the spirit world himself; knowing Taha Aki would quickly claim his body. So his dreams of conquest with a spirit warrior army were impossible, and he sought to content himself with ruling over the tribe. He became a burden - seeking privileges that Taha Aki had never requested, refusing to work alongside his warriors, taking a young second wife and then a third, though Taha Aki's wife lived on - something unheard of in the tribe. Taha Aki watched in helpless fury.

"Eventually, Taha Aki tried to kill his body to save the tribe from Utlapa's excesses. He brought a fierce wolf down from the mountains, but Utlapa hid behind his warriors. When the wolf killed a young man who was protecting the false chief, Taha Aki felt horrible grief. He ordered the wolf away.

"All the stories tell us that it was no easy thing to be a spirit warrior. It was more frightening than exhilarating to be freed from one's body. This is why they only used their magic in times of need. The chief's solitary journeys to keep watch were a burden and a sacrifice. Being bodiless was disorienting, uncomfortable, horrifying. Taha Aki had been away from his body for so long at this point that he was in agony. He felt he was doomed - never to cross over to the final land where his ancestors waited, stuck in this torturous nothingness forever.

"The great wolf followed Taha Aki's spirit as he twisted and writhed in agony through the woods. The wolf was very large for its kind, and beautiful. Taha Aki was suddenly jealous of the dumb animal. At least it had a body. At least it had a life. Even life as an animal would be better than this horrible empty consciousness.

"And then Taha Aki had the idea that changed us all. He asked the great wolf to make room for him, to share. The wolf complied. Taka Aki entered the wolf's body with relief and gratitude. It was not his human body, but it was better than the void of the spirit world.

"As one, the man and the wolf returned to the village on the harbor. The people ran in fear, shouting for the warriors to come. The warriors ran to meet the wolf with their spears. Utlapa, of course, stayed safely hidden.

"Taha Aki did not attack his warriors. He retreated slowly from them, speaking with his eyes and trying to yelp the songs of his people. The warriors began to realize that the wolf was no ordinary animal, that there was a spirit influencing it. One older warrior, a man name Yut, decided to disobey the false chief's order and try to communicate with the wolf.

"As soon as Yut crossed to the spirit world, Taha Aki left the wolf - the animal waited tamely for his return - to speak to him. Yut gathered the truth in an instant, and welcomed his true chief home.

"At this time, Utlapa came to see if the wolf had been defeated. When he saw Yut lying lifeless on the ground, surrounded by protective warriors, he realized what was happening. He drew his knife and raced forward to kill Yut before he could return to his body.

"'Traitor,' he screamed, and the warriors did not know what to do. The chief had forbidden spirit journeys, and it was the chief's decision how to punish those who disobeyed.

"Yut jumped back into his body, but Utlapa had his knife at his throat and a hand covering his mouth. Taha Aki's body was strong, and Yut was weak with age. Yut could not say even one word to warn the others before Utlapa silenced him forever.

"Taha Aki watched as Yut's spirit slipped away to the final lands that were barred to Taha Aki for all eternity. He felt a great rage, more powerful than anything he'd felt before. He entered the big wolf again, meaning to rip Utlapa's throat out. But, as he joined the wolf, the greatest magic happened.

"Taha Aki's anger was the anger of a man. The love he had for his people and the hatred he had for their oppressor were too vast for the wolf's body, too human. The wolf shuddered, and - before the eyes of the shocked warriors and Utlapa - transformed into a man.

"The new man did not look like Taha Aki's body. He was far more glorious. He was the flesh interpretation of Taha Aki's spirit. The warriors recognized him at once, though, for they had flown with Taha Aki's spirit.

"Utlapa tried to run, but Taha Aki had the strength of the wolf in his new body. He caught the thief and crushed the spirit from him before he could jump out of the stolen body.

"The people rejoiced when they understood what had happened. Taha Aki quickly set everything right, working again with his people and giving the young wives back to their families. The only change he kept in place was the end of the spirit travels. He knew that it was too dangerous now that the idea of stealing a life was there. The spirit warriors were no more.

"From that point on, Taha Aki was more than either wolf or man. They called him Taha Aki the Great Wolf, or Taha Aki the Spirit Man. He led the tribe for many, many years, for he did not age. When danger threatened, he would resume his wolf-self to fight or frighten the enemy. The people dwelt in peace. Taha Aki fathered many sons, and some of these found that, after they had reached the age of manhood, they, too, could transform into wolves. The wolves were all different, because they were spirit wolves and reflected the man they were inside."

"So that's why Sam is all black," Quil muttered under his breath, grinning. "Black heart, black fur."

Bella was so involved in the story; it was a shock to come back to the present, to the circle around the dying fire.

With another shock, Bella realized that the circle was made up of Taha Aki's great - to however many degrees - grandsons.  
And whatever Mallie was….  
The fire threw a volley of sparks into the sky, and they shivered and danced, making shapes that were almost decipherable.  
"And your chocolate fur reflects what?" Sam whispered back to Quil. "How sweet you are?"

"Some of the sons became warriors with Taha Aki, and they no longer aged. Others, who did not like the transformation, refused to join the pack of wolf-men. These began to age again, and the tribe discovered that the wolf-men could grow old like anyone else if they gave up their spirit wolves. Taha Aki had lived the span of three old men's lives. He had married a third wife after the deaths of the first two, and found in her his true spirit wife. Though he had loved the others, this was something else. He decided to give up his spirit wolf so that he would die when she did.  
"That is how the magic came to us, but it is not the end of the story. . . ."

Billy looked at Old Quil who shook his head slightly so Billy nodded at Mallie who sat up and began the tale.

"That was the story of the Spirit Warriors….and now we tell the tale of the Third Wife."

Her voice was clearer then usual Bella noticed with a soft hum to it almost like a lullaby…

"Many years after Taha Aki gave up his spirit wolf, when he was an old man, trouble began in the north, with the Makahs. Several young women of their tribe had disappeared, and they blamed it on the neighbouring wolves,

Who they feared and mistrusted. The wolf-men could still read each other's thoughts while in their wolf forms, just like their ancestors had while in their spirit forms.

They knew that none of their number was to blame.

Taha Aki tried to pacify the Makah chief, but there was too much fear. Taha Aki did not want to have a war on his hands.

He was no longer a warrior to lead his people.

He charged his oldest wolf-son, Taha Wi, with finding the true culprit before hostilities began.  
"Taha Wi led the five other wolves in his pack on a search through the mountains, looking for any evidence of the missing Makahs. They came across something they had never encountered before - a strange, sweet scent in the forest that burned their noses to the point of pain."

Her eyes were hooded and she stared at the flames before her dying slowly giving off a warm glow.

"They did not know what creature could give off such a scent. But they followed it…."

"There were faint traces of human blood among the trail. This they were sure was the enemy they were looking for."

"The journey took them so far north that Taha Wi sent half the pack, the younger ones, back to the harbor to report to Taha Aki.

"Taha Wi and his two brothers did not return.

"The younger brothers searched for their elders, but found only silence. Taha Aki mourned for his sons.

He wished to avenge his sons' death, but he was old. He went to the Makah chief in his mourning clothes and told him everything that had happened. The Makah chief believed his grief, and tensions ended between the tribes.

"A year later, two Makah maidens disappeared from their homes on the same night. The Makahs called on the Quileute wolves at once, who found the same sweet stink all through the Makah village. The wolves went on the hunt again.

"Only one came back. He was Yaha Uta, the oldest son of Taka Aki's third wife, and the youngest in the pack. He brought something with him that had never been seen in all the days of the Quileutes - a strange, cold, stony corpse that he carried in pieces. All who were of Taha Aki's blood, even those who had never been wolves, could smell the piercing smell of the dead creature. This was the enemy of the Makahs.

"Yaha Uta described what had happened: he and his brothers had found the creature, which looked like a man but was hard as a granite rock, with the two Makah daughters. One girl was already dead, white and bloodless on the ground. The other was in the creature's arms, his mouth at her throat. She may have been alive when they came upon the hideous scene, but the creature quickly snapped her neck and tossed her lifeless body to the ground when they approached. His white lips were covered in her blood, and his eyes glowed red.

"Yaha Uta described the fierce strength and speed of the creature. One of his brothers quickly became a victim when he underestimated that strength. The creature ripped him apart like a doll. Yaha Uta and his other brother were more wary. They worked together, coming at the creature from the sides, outmanoeuvring it.

They had to reach the very limits of their wolf strength and speed, something that had never been tested before. The creature was hard as stone and cold as ice. They found that only their teeth could damage it. They began to rip small pieces of the creature apart while it fought them.

"But the creature learned quickly, and soon was matching their manoeuvres. It got its hands on Yaha Uta's brother. Yaha Uta found an opening on the creature's throat, and he lunged. His teeth tore the head off the creature, but the hands continued to mangle his brother.

"Yaha Uta ripped the creature into unrecognizable chunks, tearing pieces apart in a desperate attempt to save his brother. He was too late, but, in the end, the creature was destroyed."

"Or so they thought. Yaha Uta laid the reeking remains out to be examined by the elders. One severed hand lay beside a piece of the creature's granite arm. The two pieces touched when the elders poked them with sticks, and the hand reached out towards the arm piece, trying to reassemble itself.  
"Horrified, the elders set fire to the remains. A great cloud of choking, vile smoke polluted the air. When there was nothing but ashes, they separated the ashes into many small bags and spread them far and wide - some in the ocean, some in the forest, and some in the cliff caverns. Taha Aki wore one bag around his neck, so he would be warned if the creature ever tried to put himself together again."

Mallie paused and Billy took out a small leather bag blackened with age.

A few gasped. The newcomers.

"They called it The Cold One, the Blood Drinker, and lived in fear that it was not alone. They only had one wolf protector left, young Yaha Uta."  
"They did not have long to wait. The creature had a mate, another blood drinker, who came to the Quileutes seeking revenge.  
"The stories say that the Cold Woman was the most beautiful thing human eyes had ever seen."

"She looked like the goddess of the dawn when she entered the village that morning; the sun was shining for once, and it glittered off her white skin and lit the golden hair that flowed down to her knees. Her face was magical in its beauty, her eyes black in her white face. Some fell to their knees to worship her."  
"She asked something in a high, piercing voice, in a language no one had ever heard. The people were dumbfounded, not knowing how to answer her. There was none of Taha Aki's blood among the witnesses but one small boy. He clung to his mother and screamed that the smell was hurting his nose. One of the elders, on his way to council, heard the boy and realized what had come among them. He yelled for the people to run."

"She killed him first."  
"There were twenty witnesses to the Cold Woman's approach. Two survived, only because she grew distracted by the blood, and paused to sate her thirst. They ran to Taha Aki, who sat in counsel with the other elders, his sons, and his third wife.  
"Yaha Uta transformed into his spirit wolf as soon as he heard the news. He went to destroy the blood drinker alone. Taha Aki, his third wife, his sons, and his elders followed behind him.  
"At first they could not find the creature, only the evidence of her attack. Bodies lay broken, a few drained of blood, strewn across the road where she'd appeared. Then they heard the screams and hurried to the harbor.  
"A handful of the Quileutes had run to the ships for refuge. She swam after them like a shark, and broke the bow of their boat with her incredible strength. When the ship sank, she caught those trying to swim away and broke them, too.  
"She saw the great wolf on the shore, and she forgot the fleeing swimmers. She swam so fast she was a blur and came, dripping and glorious, to stand before Yaha Uta. She pointed at him with one white finger and asked another incomprehensible question. Yaha Uta waited.  
"It was a close fight. She was not the warrior her mate had been. But Yaha Uta was alone - there was no one to distract her fury from him.  
"When Yaha Uta lost, Taha Aki screamed in defiance. He limped forward and shifted into an ancient, white-muzzled wolf. The wolf was old, but this was Taha Aki the Spirit Man, and his rage made him strong. The fight began again.  
"Taha Aki's third wife had just seen her son die before her. Now her husband fought, and she had no hope that he could win. She'd heard every word the witnesses to the slaughter had told the council. She'd heard the story of Yaha Uta's first victory, and knew that his brother's diversion had saved him.  
"The third wife grabbed a knife from the belt of one of the sons who stood beside her. They were all young sons, not yet men, and she knew they would die when their father failed.  
"The third wife ran toward the Cold Woman with the dagger raised high. The Cold Woman smiled, barely distracted from her fight with the old wolf. She had no fear of the weak human woman or the knife that would not even scratch her skin, and she was about to deliver the death blow to Taha Aki.  
"And then the third wife did something the Cold Woman did not expect. She fell to her knees at the blood drinker's feet and plunged the knife into her own heart.  
"Blood spurted through the third wife's fingers and splashed against the Cold Woman. The blood drinker could not resist the lure of the fresh blood leaving the third wife's body. Instinctively, she turned to the dying woman, for one second entirely consumed by thirst.  
"Taha Aki's teeth closed around her neck.  
"That was not the end of the fight, but Taha Aki was not alone now. Watching their mother die, two young sons felt such rage that they sprang forth as their spirit wolves, though they were not yet men. With their father, they finished the creature."

"His youngest daughter was visited that night by her mother's spirit. She continued to see her mother and her fallen brothers…..up until the day she died."  
"Taha Aki never rejoined the tribe. He never changed back to a man again. He lay for one day beside the body of the third wife, growling whenever anyone tried to touch her, and then he went into the forest and never returned.  
"Trouble with the cold ones was rare from that time on. Taha Aki's sons guarded the tribe until their sons were old enough to take their places. There were never more than three wolves at a time. It was enough. Occasionally a blood drinker would come through these lands, but they were taken by surprise, not expecting the wolves. Sometimes a wolf would die, but never were they decimated again like that first time. They'd learned how to fight the cold ones, and they passed the knowledge on, wolf mind to wolf mind, spirit to spirit, father to son.

"Time passed, and the descendants of Taha Aki no longer became wolves when they reached manhood. Only in a great while, if a cold one was near, would the wolves return. The cold ones always came in ones and twos, and the pack stayed small.

"A bigger coven came, and your own great-grandfathers prepared to fight them off. But the leader spoke to Ephraim Black as if he were a man, and promised not to harm the Quileutes. His strange yellow eyes gave some proof to his claim that they were not the same as other blood drinkers. The wolves were outnumbered; there was no need for the cold ones to offer a treaty when they could have won the fight. Ephraim accepted. They've stayed true to their side, though their presence does tend to draw in others.  
"And their numbers have forced a larger pack than the tribe has ever seen," Old Quil said, and for one moment his black eyes, all but buried in the wrinkles of skin folded around them, seemed to rest on me. "Except, of course, in Taha Aki's time," he said, and then he sighed. "And so the sons of our tribe again carry the burden and share the sacrifice their fathers endured before them."

She paused and Old Quil finished the story. "The youngest daughter went on to marry a male who'd loved her from the first time he set eyes on her but did not know it. He only did when he thought she would die at the hands of the Cold Woman." He sighed. "She was the first in the line of Guardians. A special female chosen at birth to be the companions of the pack and their duties. Connect them to their past and be the link of safety for their future."

Bella looked at Mallie who was resting her head on Embry's shoulder again eyes closed.

"And the Youngest Daughters legacy continued. She blessed the chosen female and watched over her until she could protect herself. A guardian is one of the most scared things in our history since in every battle since….a guardian has been the decider of life and death of the enemy and her pack."

It was official Mallie was asleep.

Her head on Embry's shoulder his warmth and Old Quil…the man who had practically raised her speaking the legends she'd heard a thousand times from him; the council and the spirits themselves….lulling her to sleep.

* * *

**Second chap in one day I'm proud ha! **


	7. Dance

**DO NOT OWN!**

**The dress in this chapter in on profile.**

* * *

Mallie's schoolmates noticed the differences of the quiet girl.

How she'd grown a good few inches; how she moved out of Old Quil's and into Sam Uley the 'leader' of the 'infamous' "Uley Gang."

How everyday without fail a member of the said gang would be outside ready to pick her up otherwise it would be Emily and when two best friends Collin and Brady suddenly attach themselves to her rumours went flying around school.

No Quileute could figure it out…what made little orphan Mallie so special that she got to hang out with Sam Uley and the 'gang?'

Oh if only they knew…..

The end of the school year was approaching and so was the girl's birthday. Finally she turned fourteen.

Maybe then everything will settle down a bit.

Despite popular belief Mallie did wish she could just….talk to the other girls in her class about you know girl stuff.

Boys; make-up; shopping….not that she ever let the pack know this.

But when Collin and Brady asked for Friday off….

"Why?" Sam frowned and Mallie stilled.

"Shut up! Shut up!" She dived at the boys who dodged by leaping off the couch and grinning at Sam.

"The dance….and it's mandatory."

"Dammit." Mallie groaned burying her head in a cushion.

"And when were you going to tell us?" Sam asked her frowning.

"I was gonna trick Paul into signing a note excusing me from it."

"How?" Paul asked confused.

"Pretending it's a detention note I don't want Sam to know about."

"Dammit!" He cursed.

"You're going." Emily stated walking in with a new batch of cookies.

"Why?" She asked.

"Because I haven't been shopping in a long time and you need to get out more."

"Get out more? I basically live in the forest!"

"Too bad. You're going."

"Sam!" She looked at the alpha.

"Sorry…"

"She got you whipped dude."

"That's sort of the point of an imprint."

"Huh. You two…." She stated pointing at Collin and Brady. "ARE DEAD!"

The three of them took off running.

Collin and Brady running from the very scary female that was Mallie and she chasing.

"Do I want to know?" Seth asked entering the house.

"No."

And that's how Emily and Mallie ended up in Port Angeles with a hundred bucks thanks to Sam.

"Okay. Stop acting like you don't love this." Emily told her watching the female's eyes light up at the clothes.

"Yeah well don't get to do it often…..Emily. Do you think I'm pretty?"

She nearly choked. "You've got to be kidding me right?"

"What?" She asked frowning.

"You're daring to ask that question?"

"Uh….yeah…"

She sighed and continued searching for a dress for her little companion.

"Don't boys ever….talk to you? Not the pack but in school."

She opened her mouth.

"Collin and Brady don't count."

She shut her mouth. "I don't want any boy at school."

"Hm…what?"

"Nothing….hey…I think we might have a winner."

Emily checked it and grinned. "Beautiful."

The dress did end up being the one so thankfully they were done fast with money left over for a milkshake in a diner that's large sized meals was a good place for the pack to take their imprints when they went on dates….

"Emily…." She said slowly. "I need to tell you something….."

~LAPUSHWOLFPACK~

Brady had found himself a date in his girlfriend Lily so that left Collin and Mallie together.

"Oh my god." Jared choked walking into the house minutes before Collin was set to get there.

"Hi….." She offered him weakly.

"Hey guy….oh my god." Embry said walking in behind him. "M-Mallie y-you're…"

"No! No! No! N-O! Upstairs! Get changed!" Sam said also entering the house.

"Shut up Sam." Emily said smiling putting her hands on Mallie's shoulders. "She looks lovely!"

And she did.

In a flower strapped soft pink and pearl dress with a full mesh skirt coloured a soft pink with another layer of white mesh patterned with flowers and had a scalloped hem.

It had a gathered waist that flowed to two inches above the knee.

Her shoes were a light pink sandal that had a slight heel and a white and pink small flower on it.

Collin entered the house after the older members of the pack and grinned at the pack guardian.

"Ready Mallie?" He asked.

"Yeah….I guess so."

Collin was suddenly held in place by two male's one hand on each shoulder.

"Listen pup…" Jared began.

"If we find out one person has put hands on Mallie in a way they shouldn't we're holding you responsible and make sure to pass that onto Brady as well." Sam warned jokingly.

Jared though was not joking.

"That's not gonna happen." Mallie's calm voice told them. "I can promise that."

Embry visibly relaxed at her words.

"Oh and please let go of my date. Apparently we have a dance to get too." She ordered the boys pulling Jared's ear.

"OW!" He yelped.

Sam sighed and the two of them let go of Collin.

"Bye Jared. Bye Sam." She hugged them both before turning to Embry and pecking him on the cheek.

"Bye Embry." She said quietly to the blushing werewolf before leaving with Collin.

"You okay man?" Jared asked him.

"Uh….y-yeah. I'm uh…I have to meet up with Jake." The boy nearly ran out of the house.

Emily chuckled. "That's so cute."

"What?" Sam asked she shook her head still smiling.

"We had a girly talk."

"About?"

She tapped her nose. "Girl stuff."

Jared and Sam looked at each other then shrugged.

~LAPUSHWOLFPACK~

The night turned out great.

Pictures were taken with cameras to be put up on facebook or bedroom walls in Mallie's case.

But when she and the boys walked into Emily's after the party everyone was tense and gathered there.

"What's going on?"

Sam sighed. "We're going to war."

The three looked at each other.

Oh. Holy….

* * *

**shorter then usual due to the fact I really wana get onto the training and I had slight writers block!**

**Review peeps!**


	8. Train

**I DON'T OWN TWILIGHT!**

* * *

After Sam explained about what happened with the Cullens and the newborns Mallie was gobsmacked.

"They want an alliance?" She asked.

"It's the best thing to do."

"And they're coming for Bella Swan?"

Sam nodded.

She looked at Jacob. "You sure do know how to pick 'em don't you?"

He snarled at her and Embry growled at Jacob.

"So what time?"

"Three am. Apparently there's some training we have to go through."

"Okay." She nodded. "I'm coming."

"No!"

"Yes Sam…..I need to come with you please…"

He sighed and looked at the pack before nodding. "Fine…"

But on the inside he was thinking to himself. 'PLEASE DON'T LET ME REGRET THIS…..'

~LAPUSHWOLFPACK~

As they got closer they saw and heard the Cullen's.

Mallie sat on top of Embry lazily resting her arms on his head; her head resting on both her hands in a v-like shape in-between his ears.

"Prepare yourselves - they've been holding out on us." Edward Cullen stated  
"What do you mean?" Alice demanded.  
"Shh," He cautioned, and stared past her into the darkness.  
The Cullens' informal circle suddenly widened out into a loose line with Jasper and Emmett at the spear point.  
Bella squinted toward the forest, seeing nothing.  
"Damn," Emmett muttered under his breath. "Did you ever see anything like it?"  
Esme and Rosalie exchanged a wide-eyed glance.  
"What is it?" She whispered as quietly as she could.

"I can't see."  
"The pack has grown," Edward murmured into her ear.  
Hadn't Bella told him that Quil had joined the pack?

She strained to see the six wolves in the gloom.

Finally, something glittered in the blackness - their eyes, higher up than they should be.

She'd forgotten how very tall the wolves were.

Like horses, only thick with muscle and fur - and teeth like knives, impossible to overlook.  
Bella could only see the eyes.

And as she scanned, straining to see more, it occurred to me her that there were more than six pairs facing them. One, two, three . . . She counted the pairs swiftly in her head.

Twice.  
There were ten of them.  
And somewhere in there was Mallie. Eleven.  
"Fascinating," Edward murmured almost silently.  
Carlisle took a slow, deliberate step forward.

It was a careful movement, designed to reassure.  
"Welcome," He greeted the invisible wolves and their guardian.  
"Thank you," Edward responded in a strange, flat tone, and Bella realized at once that the words came from Sam.

Bella looked to the eyes shining in the centre of the line, the highest up, the tallest of them all.

It was impossible to separate the shape of the big black wolf from the darkness.

Edward spoke again in the same detached voice, speaking Sam's words.

"We will watch and listen, but no more. That is the most we can ask of our self-control."  
"That is more than enough," Carlisle answered. "My son Jasper" He gestured to where Jasper stood, tensed and ready.

"Has experience in this area. He will teach us how they fight, how they are to be defeated. I'm sure you can apply this to your own hunting style."  
"They are different from you?" Edward asked for Sam.  
Carlisle nodded.

"They are all very new - only months old to this life. Children, in a way. They will have no skill or strategy, only brute strength. Tonight their numbers stand at twenty. Ten for us, ten for you - it shouldn't be difficult. The numbers may go down. The new ones fight amongst themselves."  
A rumble passed down the shadowy line of wolves, a low growling mutter that somehow managed to sound enthusiastic.  
"We are willing to take more than our share, if necessary," Edward translated, his tone less indifferent now.  
Carlisle smiled. "We'll see how it plays out."  
"Do you know when and how they'll arrive?"  
"They'll come across the mountains in four days, in the late morning. As they approach, Alice will help us intercept their path."  
"Thank you for the information. We will watch."  
With a sighing sound, the eyes sank closer to the ground one set at a time.  
It was silent for two heartbeats, and then Jasper took a step into the empty space between the vampires and the wolves.

It wasn't hard for Bella to see him - his skin was as bright against the darkness as the wolves' eyes. Jasper threw a wary glance toward Edward, who nodded, and then Jasper turned his back to the werewolves.

He sighed, clearly uncomfortable.

"Carlisle's right." Jasper spoke only to the vampires.

He seemed to be trying to ignore the audience behind him.

"They'll fight like children. The two most important things you'll need to remember are, first, don't let them get their arms around you and, second, don't go for the obvious kill. That's all they'll be prepared for. As long as you come at them from the side and keep moving, they'll be too confused to respond effectively. Emmett?"  
Emmett the large leech stepped out of the line with a huge smile.  
Jasper backed toward the north end of the opening between the allied enemies.

He waved Emmett forward.  
"Okay, Emmett first. He's the best example of a newborn attack."  
Emmett's eyes narrowed. "I'll try not to break anything," he muttered.  
Jasper grinned. "What I meant is that Emmett relies on his strength. He's very straightforward about the attack. The newborns won't be trying anything subtle, either. Just go for the easy kill, Emmett."  
Jasper backed up a few more paces, his body tensing.  
"Okay, Emmett - try to catch me."

And Mallie and Bella couldn't see Jasper anymore - he was a blur as Emmett charged him like a bear, grinning while he snarled.

Emmett was impossibly quick, too, but not like Jasper.

It looked like Jasper had no more substance than a ghost - any time it seemed Emmett's big hands had him for sure, Emmett's fingers clenched around nothing but the air.

Then Emmett froze.  
Jasper had him from behind, his teeth an inch from his throat.  
Emmett cussed.  
There was a muttered rumble of appreciation from the watching wolves.  
And a distant. "Well shit…" From Mallie a whisper Bella couldn't hear but the vampires could…  
"Again," Emmett insisted, his smile gone.  
"It's my turn," Edward protested.  
"In a minute." Jasper grinned, stepping back.

"I want to show Bella something first."  
Bella watched with anxious eyes as he waved Alice forward.  
"I know you worry about her,"

"I want to show you why that's not necessary."  
Though Bella knew that Jasper would never allow any harm to come to Alice, it was still hard to watch as he sank back into a crouch facing her.

Alice stood motionlessly, looking tiny as a doll after Emmett, smiling to herself. Jasper shifted forward, and then slinked to her left.  
Alice closed her eyes.

Mallie absently scratched Embry's ear watching this with fascination.  
Bella's heart thumped unevenly as Jasper stalked toward where Alice stood.  
Jasper sprang, disappearing. Suddenly he was on the other side of Alice. She didn't appear to have moved.  
Jasper wheeled and launched himself at her again, only to land in a crouch behind her like the first time; all the while Alice stood smiling with her eyes closed.  
Mallie watched Alice more carefully now.  
She was moving.

She took a small step forward at the exact second that Jasper's body flew through the spot where she'd just been standing. She took another step, while Jasper's grasping hands whistled past where her waist had been.  
Jasper closed in, and Alice began to move faster.

She was dancing - spiralling and twisting and curling in on herself.

Jasper was her partner, lunging, reaching through her graceful patterns, and never touching her, like every movement was choreographed.

Finally, Alice laughed.  
Out of nowhere she was perched on Jasper's back, her lips at his neck.  
"Gotcha," She said, and kissed his throat.  
Jasper chuckled, shaking his head.

"You truly are one frightening little monster."  
The wolves muttered again. This time the sound was wary.  
"It's good for them to learn some respect," Edward murmured, amused.

"Up your stiff stone ass." Mallie said into the darkness and he growled.

The wolves didn't react but in their heads they were laughing…

Then Edward spoke louder. "My turn."  
"Very," I agreed, not looking away from Edward as he glided noiselessly toward Jasper, his movements lithe and watchful as a jungle cat.

They kept watching the training silent and watching until it finally ended.

"We'll be doing this tomorrow. Please feel welcome to observe again."  
"Yes," Edward answered in Sam's cool voice. "We'll be here."  
He turned to his family.  
"The pack thinks it would be helpful to be familiar with each of our scents - so they don't make mistakes later. If we could hold very still, it will make it easier for them."  
"Certainly," Carlisle said to Sam. "Whatever you need."  
There was a gloomy, throaty grumble from the wolf pack as they all rose to their feet.  
Bella's eyes were wide again, exhaustion forgotten.  
The deep black of the night was just beginning to fade - the sun brightening the clouds, though it hadn't cleared the horizon yet, far away on the other side of the mountains. As they approached, it was suddenly possible to make out shapes . . . colours.  
Sam was in the lead, of course.

Unbelievably huge, black as midnight, a monster straight out of Bella's nightmares - literally; after the first time she'd seen Sam and the others in the meadow, they'd starred in her bad dreams more than once.  
Now that she could see them all, match the vastness with each pair of eyes, it looked like more than ten. The pack was overwhelming.

And there was Mallie asleep on top of a gray wolf with black spots in his fur the tiredness had taken over once Jasper said they were done…..

It had been a long night….

* * *

**Another update? Yeah im on FIRE! Hehe! **

**Review**


	9. Savior

**DO NOT OWN!**

* * *

When she woke up she was in her room wearing the clothes she'd worn to training the night before.

Stumbling downstairs she saw the place empty expect for Embry.

"What…"

"Sam and Emily are with Billy and Old Quil. Seth and Leah running patrol; Jacob's AWOL, Collin and Brady are at home; Quil's catching up on homework….Jared's with Kim and Paul…..is doing whatever Paul does when he's alone…"

She giggled and sat beside him on the couch.

"Hungry?"

"Nah…not really….I keep thinking about last night….I'm worried about you guys…"

He took her hand in his. "It'll be okay. We're actually going to watch again tonight. Jake, Quil and I….you coming?"

"Couldn't keep me away."

He grinned. "So how was the dance?"

"Good actually…"

"You're going to another one are you?"

"Oh hell no!"

He grinned lazily at her again in a way that made his brown eyes light up she looked down unable to meet his gaze cheeks lighting up with a blush.

He smiled lightly at her. Heavens knows what he was thinking…

~LAPUSHWOLFPACK~

Emmett and Jasper were wrestling; Alice and Rosalie sat on the ground watching and Carlisle and Esme were holding hands away from it all.

Bella saw three wolves standing at the end of the clearing. Mallie stood with them.

Bella knew the big russet wolf was Jacob who stood wearing a wolfish grin on him rubbing his head against Mallie who was scratching his ear.

After a few seconds leaning against the gray wolf but not before kissing the chocolate brown wolf on his muzzle.

She also knew, without asking, which of the others was Embry and which was Quil.

Because Embry was clearly the thinner gray wolf with the dark spots on his back, who sat so patiently watching head slightly tilted to one side since Mallie had lain her head on his sideways.

While Quil - deep chocolate brown, lighter over his face - twitched constantly, looking like he was dying to join in the mock fight.

Mallie grinned over at Quil who looked down at her and yipped slightly wagging his tail which earned him a grin.

They weren't monsters, even like this. They were friends.  
Friends who didn't look nearly as indestructible as Emmett and Jasper did, moving faster than cobra strikes while the moonlight glinted off their granite-hard skin.

Friends who didn't seem to understand the danger involved here. Friends who were still somewhat mortal, friends who could bleed, friends who could die. . . .

Edward's confidence was reassuring, because it was plain that he wasn't truly worried about his family.

But would it hurt him if something happened to the wolves?

Was there any reason for him to be anxious, if that possibility didn't bother him?

Edward's confidence only applied to one set of Bella's fears.  
She tried to smile back at Jacob, swallowing against the lump in her throat.

She didn't seem to get it right.  
Jacob sprang lightly to his feet, his agility at odds with his sheer mass, and trotted over to where Edward and Bella stood on the fringe of things.  
"Jacob," Edward greeted him politely.  
Jacob ignored him, his dark eyes on me.

He put his head down to her level, as he had yesterday, cocking it to one side.

A low whimper escaped his muzzle.  
"I'm fine," She answered, not needing the translation that Edward was about to give.

"Just worried, you know."  
Jacob continued to stare at her.  
"He wants to know why," Edward murmured.  
Jacob growled - not a threatening sound, an annoyed sound - and Edward's lips twitched.  
"What?" Bella asked.  
"He thinks my translations leave something to be desired. What he actually thought was, 'That's really stupid. What is there to be worried about?' I edited, because I thought it was rude."  
She halfway smiled, too anxious to really feel amused. "There's plenty to be worried about," She told Jacob.  
"Like a bunch of really stupid wolves getting themselves hurt."  
Jacob laughed his coughing bark.  
Edward sighed. "Jasper wants help. You'll be okay without a translator?"  
Across the field Mallie looked at Quil and Embry. "For some reason I'm taking great offence to leechy playing translator…"

Both barked a laugh.  
"I'll manage." Bella replied.

Mallie stared at Jacob from across the field.

'_Man you're a lovesick puppy….pun intended.'_

"_Shut it Mallie…._'

But across the field they grinned at each other.

~LAPUSHWOLFPACK~

Emily held Kim's hand down stairs.

They stared at the TV not really watching what was on worried sick about the boys that were fighting as they sat in their house.

The wolves were ripping apart vampires and Mallie?

Mallie was sitting on a cliff not three miles from where the battle was supposed to take place legs crossed and eyes closed.

Through the packs eyes she heard Alice Cullen's voice….it was almost an echo to her.

"They're coming…."

_Five._

The pack readied itself standing still in formation.

_Four._

The distant sound of feet thundering against the forest floor sounding very uneasy on their feet like a stamped of clumsy horses could be heard.

_Three_

The sound was getting closer; they could hear their battle cries nearly taste their blood lust for Bella Swan…

_Two._

Their sickly sweet stench could be smelt stronger now…and the sounds of the running were so close…

_One._

They broke through the trees snarling and running at the coven.

Showtime.

Mallie was all seeing in this fight every wolf was offering her a chance and she took it.

Every thought, every kill she felt it….

Especially the one with Seth and Edward against that weird Riley guy and Victoria.

Her eyes wide when Bella cut herself on a rock…

Shit girl's got balls….

And then it was over. Just like that….Victoria was dead and burning…the newborns were ripped to pieces and everyone was relatively.

Mallie stood up and thanked Taha Aki for her new found speed.

She was in the clearing in less then ten minutes.

Suddenly a newborn appeared staring at her.

She scrambled back but tripped on a rock cutting her leg.

The female panicked when she saw blood the newborn lunged but was met half-way by a russet wolf.

Jacob.

The two of them met in a fight but the newborn got its hands around Jacob who yelped in pain and feel flat on the ground phasing into human instantly in front of Mallie.

The pack appeared ripping the newborn apart and Mallie scrambled over to Jacob touching his face hysterically crying.

"I'm sorry! I'm so sorry!"

Bella made it to beside Jacob.

"Jake!"

Mallie was still crying when she felt the warm arms of Embry pull her away from Jacob.

She buried her face in his chest and sobbed ignoring the stinging pain in her leg.

He wrapped his arms around her.

"Embry…" The weak voice of Jacob stated as the boys lifted him up taking him back to Billy's place.

"I know….thank you Jake….thank you for my Imprint."

* * *

**THREE UPDATES IN ONE DAY COME ON HOW MUCH DO YOU LOVE ME? **

**Okay now I have to stop because its late enough and if I keep going I'm not gonna stop till three am and that will annoy de shite out of me!**

**QUESTION TIME!**

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	10. Wedding

**I DO NOT OWN.**

**THE DRESS IN THIS CHAPTER IS ALSO UP ON MY PROFILE….**

**(Whether or not the link works is really not my fault)**

* * *

Jacob's screams echoed from his bedroom inside the house.

Mallie sat on the porch shaking with a newly bandaged leg.

Jared and Embry sat beside her trying to calm the girl down.

She was breathing heavily and kept repeating…."I'm sorry. I'm sorry…."

She wasn't listening to the boys who kept saying it wasn't her fault…

But it was. It was her that made that newborn lunge and it was for her that Jacob got into that fight and got hurt.

"Come on Mal….Jake wouldn't like you beating yourself up about this." Jared tried to tell her but she wouldn't listen.

Bella arrived minutes later in her truck just as Carlisle was leaving.

"He'll be okay." He told the pack but mostly to Mallie who let out a sigh of relief.

"Thanks Doc…" She told him finally slowing her breathing and resting her head on Embry's shoulder.

Jared suddenly clasped Embry's other shoulder tightly. "When this is all over." He hissed. "We need to have a talk."

He let him go.

Bella went inside and returned maybe twenty minutes later she looked at Mallie. "He told me to tell you stop shaking and blaming yourself you nutcase."

She grinned suddenly. "He's okay." She gave a shaky chuckle and another breath of relief.

"Can I talk to him?" She asked Billy.

He nodded. "Go on a head."

So she did entering the house but not before stopping at the fridge to get a can of coke.

"Really?" He asked her when she entered.

"Coke?"

She grinned. "It's the same thing I drank the day you phased. Running around Sam and Emily's house like a nutcase shouting while I just sat on the couch trying to watch my TV show but you kept getting in the way. I thought it'd be funny." She told him tears threatening.

"Stop crying Short-stack. Embry will have my head…."

"Yeah about that…how did you know?"

"Embry can't keep things from me and Quil. Never could…"

"That little rat…." She muttered to herself.

He smiled weakly. "You told Emily."

"Yeah but…"

"Shut it! You have no foot to stand on."

"Neither do you!"

"It's healing! I still have my left. Wanna try?"

"No! Damn you you're gonna give me a heart attack!"

"I need you to do me a favour."

"That is?"

"Look after them; the pack and Billy….and find out who you are?"

"Huh?"

"Honestly. I think you'd make an excellent Black and Billy would love to know."

She nodded. "Jacob what are you planning?" She asked him.

"No clue."

"Idiot."

"Mallie I never apologized for shouting at you all summer…I'm sorry."

"Don't be. I'm not a wolf. I can't kill vampires…I can put up a decent fight but I can't finish it…if making you slightly okay by letting you scream at me was all I could do then I'd do it. It's just who I am."

"Nuts?"

"I said who I am not what I am Jacob Black!"

He grinned. "Thanks Mallie for everything."

"Your welcome…."

She left the house and went back out to the pack. "He'll be fine. In time."

~LAPUSHWOLFPACK~

But he wasn't at soon as that blasted wedding invite arrived Jacob had flown off at a wolf into the forest followed by Quil and Embry with Mallie lagging behind.

"_Let him go…."_ The soft voice of Sam said.

"_Shift back. I'll pick you up…." _Embry and Quil did what their Alpha told them.

"_Thank you_." Jacob said.

"_Come back when you can….."_

_Call me when you need me."_ Mallie told him and then disconnected him.

Jacob kept running leaving Jacob Black behind.

~LAPUSHWOLFPACK~

Embry did get his ass kicked by Jared and Quil because of the Imprint but after that they left him alone.

Mallie spent a lot of time with Billy watching the game with him and taking him fishing.

"Going to the wedding?" She asked him.

"I have to….for Charlie….Sue and Seth are going as well."

"Do you want me to come?" She asked him.

He sighed happily and nodded. "Yeah. I'd love that."

And that's how she ended up sitting beside Seth in a pastel purple one shouldered dress that ended a couple of inches above the knee.

She wore a black belt around her waist and a pair of black sandals on her feet.

"I hate weddings." She muttered to Seth who grinned.

"Don't tell Emily."

"It's different with the pack. It's a party…here I sort of feel suffocated."

"Don't tell Embry. He'll think I'm not doing my job right."

"Shut up." She told him smiling as Bella began to walk down the aisle.

Her eyes on Edward she finally made it to the alter.

"We are gathered here on this glorious day to witness the marriage of Edward Cullen and Bella Swan."

Seth grinned and whispered in Mallie's ear. "You're smiling!" He said to his newfound best friend.

"Shut up!" She told him.

The pastor looked at Bella.

"Do you Bella Swan take Edward Cullen as your lawfully wedded husband…To have and to hold? For better for worse. In richer for poorer. In sickness and in health. For as long as you both shall live?"

"I do."

"And do you Edward Cullen take Bella Swan as your lawfully wedded wife. To have and to hold? For better for worse. In richer for poorer. In sickness and in health. For as long as you both shall live?"

"I do."

"By the power rested in me by the State of Washington. I now pronounce you man and wife. You may now kiss the bride!"

He did. And the crowd burst into applause.

Her mother's arms were the first to find her.

Bella walked through the crowd taking embrace after embrace with Edward holding her hand.

"Hey man!" Seth said giving him some kinda bro handshake. "I'm happy for you."

"Thank you."

"Congrats Bella." Mallie said smiling at her.

"I hope you'll be happy Bella."

"Thanks Billy. Thanks for coming Mallie."

The youngest member of the group grinned.

"Have you heard from him?" Bella asked.

Seth and Mallie looked at each other.

"I'm sure Jake wishes you the best." Billy told her.

"Well I plan on getting drunk!" Charlie Swan told them.

Everyone laughed. "They're serving up some pretty fancy champagne. Sue can I get you a glass?"

Billy rolled his eyes and swerved his chair around ramming lightly into Charlie.

"Usually I'd have some sparkling water. But that sounds great."

Seth and Mallie grinned before following Billy.

The Denali coven came over to them then.

Irina stared over at the Quileutes and Seth who was talking to Mallie holding a coke out for her to take looked over.

Their gazes met and Mallie looked over as well.

Seth slightly adjusted his body to block Mallie a bit.

Billy stared over at her as well sipping his champagne.

"Irina?" Carmen asked. "Come meet Bella."

She took two steps forward. "I'm sorry I can't do this."

"You promised…" Tanya whispered.

"They invited two…"

The coven looked over at Seth who was looking at them with an emotionless face. And Mallie who stood there next to him was sipping the tall thin glass of coke staring at them also.

"Mallie isn't a wolf exactly…." Bella offered weakly.

"Irina they're our friends." Edward told her gently.

"They killed Laurent!" Irina said desperately.

"He tired to kill Bella."

"I don't believe that! He wanted to be like us! To live in peace with humans…with me." She stated before walking away.

"Irina!"

"Well…lets not monopolise the bride." Eleazar said. "Congratulations."

"Thank you." Bella said they started to walk away.

"I'm sorry." Tanya told her once more."

They sat through really rather awkward speeches and a lot of suggestive jokes from Emmett.

"Embry will kill me for letting you hear that." Seth mumbled.

When it came to the dancing part Seth dragged Mallie out. "Mom's gonna be showing pictures of this might as well give Embry something to smile at!"

Contra to popular belief Seth was an amazing dancer since dancing lessons was a mandatory block in PE in their school.

He spun her around and lifted her to the fast up beat music.

Other guests wondered were they siblings or even twins because of their matching skin and shade of hair and brown eyes.

What the Cullen's noticed was the matching wolfish sparkle in their eyes.

What the humans noticed was a mirrored large grin on both their faces.

"The guardian/wolf relationship strikes again eh?" Edward asked Bella when he caught her looking at them.

"Huh?"

"They're nearly the same age. They're very close."

"But I thought…"

"Not in that way. Like siblings."

"Oh…"

"Huh." Edward said suddenly.

"What?"

"A surprise wedding gift."

"What…"

Out on the dance floor she suddenly stilled and looked around.

"Mal what's up?"

"Jacob." She said slowly. "Jacob's here."

Seth's eyes widened and they looked around.

'This can't end well…' Mallie thought.

* * *

**I hope you liked it! **


	11. Want

**I don't own.**

**So….any ideas for a couple name for Embry and Mallie hahahaha (that was my cousin's idea. She thought I should put it here and see what I get!)**

* * *

They found Jacob and Bella with Edward when a fight was ready to break out.

"Get your hands off her!" Edward said coldly.

"Jake." Mallie said softly. "Bro come on."

"You'll hurt her." Seth told him quietly. "Let her go."

"Jacob come on." Mallie walked forward to the shaking male. "Walk away Jake walk away."

But Jacob was angry he pushed her out of the way and she fell back. Suddenly Embry was there catching her.

"You okay?" He asked panicked as Seth and Quil tired to grab Jacob who was struggling.

"Yeah I'm good." She told him straightening up.

Embry kept a warm arm around her neck and shoulders keeping her close to his chest.

"Enough Jacob!" Sam said walking out into the light.

"Stay out of this Sam!" Jacob warned him.

"You're not going to start something we'll all have to finish!" Sam told him sternly.

"She'll die!" Jacob protested.

"She's not our concern any more." Sam told him.

Jacob took one last look at Bella before looking at Mallie. "I'm sorry." He told her.

"It's fine." She promised him.

He walked into the forest bumping Sam roughly.

"Do you want to come home or stay?" Embry asked Mallie gently.

"I'll stay. I haven't had any cake yet."

He grinned at her and kissed her cheek before nodding to Quil.

They walked into the forest and out of sight.

At the end of the night Edward and Bella got into a private car heading to the airport and the party was over.

Mallie fell asleep on the way home and was barely aware of warm arms lifting her out of the Clearwater's car and up to her room…

~LAPUSHWOLFPACK~

Jacob couldn't believe it. Why his sister? And why Paul?

Wasn't it bad enough that yet another member of the pack had imprinted - because, really, that made five of ten now!

When would it stop?

Stupid myth was supposed to be rare, for crying out loud!

All this mandatory love-at-first-sight was completely sickening!  
And again….Did it have to be his sister? Did it have to be Paul?

All he bloody did was run into her at the beach and ta-dah imprint and true love! No need to have to keep the secret around.

But did Paul have to be constantly around?

Jacob left the house and headed to the beach where Quil, Embry, Claire and Mallie were.

He still couldn't really get his head around Embry's imprint. Even when he told them he was gobsmacked.

He really didn't see it coming.

"Keep out of the water, Claire. C'mon. No, don't. Oh! Nice, kid. Seriously, do you want Emily to yell at me? I'm not bringing you back to the beach again if you don't - Oh yeah? Don't - ugh. You think that's funny, do you? Hah! Who's laughing now, huh?" Quil said.  
Embry and Mallie splashing water at each other. Laughing loudly.

Mallie kicked and Embry picked her up. "No! NO! NO!" She screamed and he ignored her throwing the female into the waves to have her come up seconds later soaked.

Quil had the giggling toddler by the ankle when he reached them.

She had a bucket in one hand, and her jeans were drenched.

He had a huge wet mark down the front of his t-shirt  
"Five bucks on the baby girl," Jake said.  
"I'll take that bet!" Mallie told him walking out of the water with Embry, blue t-shirt and cotton shorts soaked. She ran her hand through her wet hair trying to get it out of her face.  
"Hey, Jake." Quil and Embry said  
Claire squealed and threw her bucket at Quil's knees. "Down, down!"  
He set her carefully on her feet and she ran to Jacob.

She wrapped her arms around her leg.  
"Uncle Jay!"  
"How's it going, Claire?"  
She giggled. "Qwil aaaaawl wet now."  
"I can see that. Where's your mama?"

"Gone, gone, gone," Claire sang, "Cwaire pway wid Qwil aaaawl day. Cwaire nebber gowin home." She let go of Jake and ran to Quil.

He scooped her up and slung her onto his shoulders.  
"Sounds like somebody has hit the terrible twos."  
"Threes actually," Quil corrected. "You missed the party. Princess theme. She made me wear a crown, and then Emily suggested they all try out her new play makeup on me."  
"Wow, I'm really sorry I wasn't around to see that."  
"Don't worry, Emily has pictures. Actually, I look pretty hot."  
"No. Not really." Mallie told him  
"You're such a patsy."  
Quil shrugged. "Claire had a great time. That was the point."

"Hey Claire! How about we go play while the big boys play?"

Claire nodded and tugged lightly on Quil's ear. "Down! Down!"

He put her down and she followed Mallie on cubby toddler legs.

"Quil, you ever think about dating?" Jacob asked.  
"Huh?"  
"You know. A real girl. I mean, just for now, right? On your nights off babysitting duty."  
Quil stared at me, his mouth hanging open.

"What about you?" Jake asked Embry. "You had a stranger way of imprinting."

Jacob looked over to where Mallie was in front of the sea with Claire pointing out to the horizon.

When Mallie came back to the boys and Quil took Claire from the guardian.

They started walking back towards the car park.

Embry had draped a towel over Mallie's shoulders.

Quil was probably worried about Claire getting a cold in those wet clothes.

"Sorry if I was being pushy before, man, about the girl thing," Jake said.  
"Naw, that's cool," Quil said. "It kind of took me by surprise is all. I hadn't thought about it."  
"It's okay." Embry said.  
"I bet she'd understand. You know, when she's grown up. She wouldn't get mad that you had a life while she was in diapers."  
"No, I know. I'm sure she'd understand that."  
He didn't say anything else.  
"But you won't do that, will you?" Jake guessed.  
"I can't see it," he said in a low voice. "I can't imagine. I just don't... see anyone that way. I don't notice girls anymore, you know. I don't see their faces."  
"Put that together with the tiara and makeup, and maybe Claire will have a different kind of competition to worry about."

Quil grinned. "Why you free Friday Jacob?"

"Ha. Ha. What about you Embry? Mallie's still only fourteen…and your imprint…

"I know what your getting at Jake….but first of all Mallie's really old for her age and I'm only two and a half years older give or take…..it doesn't matter to me how I imprinted. I know I did and that's enough. When I thought Emmett was going to hurt her at least my heart stopped and it was then I knew. Like Quil I don't notice other girls anymore. I don't want to….she's all I'll ever want."

Sam's howl ripped through the trees to the pack. "That's Sam….god what do I do…"

"Take her to the Clearwater's. Billy and Sue will look after her."

Quil agreed and the three wolves and guardian went there separate ways.

Once phased the pack well most of it joined together.

'_Where's Quil and Jared?__'  
'__Quil's got Claire. He's taking her to the Clearwaters'.__  
'__Good. Sue will take her.'_

'_Jared was going to Kim's,_ Embry thought.

'_Good chance he didn't hear you._' Mallie told him.

There was a low grumble through the pack.

When Jared finally showed up, no doubt he'd still be thinking about Kim.

And nobody wanted a replay of what they were up to right now.  
Sam sat back on his haunches and let another howl rip into the air.

It was a signal and an order in one.  
_'__Well, we're not waiting all day for him. He'll just have to catch up later.'__  
__'Sup, boss?'_ Paul wanted to know.  
_'__We need to talk. Something's happened.'_ Sam told them.

Sam explained. Charlie was told Bella was 'sick.'

Mallie sighed. 'So what are we waiting for?'

'_Oh, come on! The treaty's broken!'__  
'__We have no proof - maybe she is sick…'__  
'__OH, PLEASE!__'_

'_Okay, so the circumstantial evidence is pretty strong. Still... Jacob.'_ Sam's thought came slow, hesitant.

'_Are you sure this is what you want? Is it really the right thing? We all know what she wanted.'__  
'__The treaty doesn't mention anything about victim preferences, Sam!'__  
'__Is she really a victim? Would you label her that way?'__  
'__Yes!__'_

_Jake.'_ Seth thought. _'They aren't our enemies.'_

'_Shut up, kid! Just 'cause you've got some kind of sick hero worship thing going on with that bloodsucker, it doesn't change the law. They are our enemies. They are in our territory. We take them out. I don't care if you had fun fighting alongside Edward Cullen once upon a time.'_

'_So what are you going to do when Bella fights with them, Jacob? Huh'_ Seth demanded

'_She's not Bella anymore.'__  
'__You gonna be the one to take her down?_' Mallie asked sharply.

He couldn't stop himself from wincing.  
_'__No, you're not. So, what? You gonna make one of us do it? And then hold a grudge against whoever it is forever?'_

'_I wouldn't...'_

'_Sure you won't. You're not ready for this fight, Jacob.'_

Minutes later after an argument Jacob ran off.

_'I'm going home…_' Mallie stated.

_'Why?'_

_'I'm tired and I can't be bothered to listen to an argument between the lot of ye. Have fun everyone.'_

Mallie made it home and thankfully Emily was shopping so she had the place to herself.

Switching on her laptop she scrolled down and found what she was looking for.

It took nearly the entire summer but she did it. Reading the information her mouth dropped.

"Holy shit…."

* * *

**What did she find? Tell me what do u think she found? Have fun and review!**


	12. Submit

**I DO NOT OWN TWILIGHT**

* * *

Due to Sam's orders through Emily Mallie rejoined the pack in the forest. Earphones in trying not to think about what she just found out.

Then Jacob phased in and everyone was shouting in their heads at what Jacob showed them.

Even Mallie who was a pretty open minded person. She was the mate of a werewolf…was pretty disgusted.

_How can this be?_

_What does it mean?_

_What will it be?__  
__Not safe._

_Not right._

_Dangerous.__  
__Unnatural._

_Monstrous._

_An abomination.__  
__We can't allow it._

The pack was moving in a circle now trying to understand what they just witnessed.

The treaty does not cover this.  
_This puts everyone in danger._

Bella's bruises, Edward's face as he burnt were floating around their minds.

Mallie flinched. This….this thing inside Bella Swan was a killer.

_They fear it, too.__  
__But they won't do anything about it__  
__Protecting Bella Swan.__  
__We can't let that influence us.__  
__The safety of our families, of everyone here, is more important than one human.__  
__If they won't kill it, we have to.__  
__Protect the tribe.__  
__Protect our families.__  
__We have to kill it before it's too late._

Edward's voice….it's growing swiftly….

Jacob tired to pick over individual thoughts other then the frantic notions going around her head.

'_No spirit would allow this thing to live….it goes against nature….'_ Mallie thought

'_No time to waste.'_ Jared thought.  
_'__It will mean a fight.'_ Embry cautioned. _'A bad one.'_  
_'__We're ready.'_ Paul insisted.  
'_We'll need surprise on our side_.' Sam thought.  
'_If we catch them divided, we can take them down separately. It will increase our chances of victory.'_ Jared thought, starting to strategize now.

'Wait!' Jacob thought.

"There's little time." Sam said.  
But - what are you thinking? You wouldn't attack them for breaking the treaty this afternoon. Now you're planning an ambush, when the treaty is still intact?  
"This is not something our treaty anticipated" Sam said.

"This is a danger to every human in the area. We don't know what kind of creature the Cullens have bred, but we know that it is strong and fast-growing. And it will be too young to follow any treaty. Remember the newborn vampires we fought? Wild, violent, beyond the reach of reason or restraint. Imagine one like that, but protected by the Cullens."

"We don't know…"  
"Exactly!" Mallie exclaimed. "We don't know….and we can't take chances on the unknown. This thing can't be trusted!"

"It's just a baby!"

"A baby doesn't bruise its mother's stomach or possibly break her ribs!" She told him.

"It's just a baby!"

"Not for long…." Leah mused.

"Jake buddy this is a massive problem we can't just ignore it…"

"You're making it bigger then it is…"

"It's a vampire-human baby. How the hell can we be making it bigger then it is?"

"The only one in danger here is Bella!" Jacob exclaimed.

"As usual…." Mallie mused.

"What was that?" He scowled at her.

Embry growled.

"Nothing, nothing at all." Mallie told him.

"Her choice this time affects us all!" Sam said.

"I don't think so."

"We can't take the chance. We can't have a blood drinker on our lands."  
"Then ask them to leave then." Seth said.

"And inflict menace on others? No matter when blood drinker passes through our lands we destroy it. No matter where they hunt."

"This is crazy" Jacob said.

"This afternoon you were afraid to put the pack in danger."  
"This afternoon I didn't know our families were at risk."  
"I can't believe this! How're you going to kill this creature without killing Bella?  
There were no words, but the silence was full of meaning.  
Jake howled. "She's human, too! Doesn't our protection apply to her?"  
"She's dying anyway." Leah thought. "We'll just shorten the process."

Jacob leaped straight at the female wolf.

"STOP!" Sam ordered.

Jacob did reluctantly.

"Bella's sacrifice is a heavy price and we will all recognise that. It is against everything we stand for to take a human life. Making an exception of our code is a bleak thing. But one that has to be done. We will mourn for what we do tonight."

"Tonight?" Mallie repeated slightly shaken as the quickness of the attack.

"Sam think about this some more…consult the Elders or something….you can't seriously mean for us to…"

"This is not the time for your tolerance for the Cullen's. There is nothing to debate you will do as told!" Sam ordered.

"We need the whole pack for this. Jacob, you are our strongest fighter. You will fight with us tonight. I understand that this is hard for you, so you will concentrate on their fighters - Emmett and Jasper Cullen. You don't have to be involved with the... other part. Quil and Embry will fight with you."

"Paul, Jared, and I will take on Edward and Rosalie. I think, from the information Jacob has brought us, they will be the ones guarding Bella. Carlisle and Alice will also be close; possibly Esme, Seth, and Leah will concentrate on them. Whoever has a clear line on - we all heard him mentally stutter over Bella's name - the creature will take it. Destroying the creature is our first priority."

"Mallie….I need you as far from this as possible but I want you at your strongest…."

Mallie bowed her head.

Could Jacob doing? Killing Bella was like killing him. Like suicide.

"Pull it together Jacob." Sam said. "The tribe comes first."

"I was wrong today Sam."

"Your reasons were wrong then. But now we have a duty to fulfil."

Jacob growled. "No."

"Yes!" Sam growled. "No loopholes tonight Jacob. You will fight the Cullen's with us. You, with Quil and Embry will take care of Jasper and Emmett. You are obligated to protect the tribe. That is why you exist. You will perform under obligation."

Jacob's knees buckled and he was on his belly beneath Sam.

No member of the pack could stand against his Alpha….

Mallie feared that this was only the beginning…

* * *

**Review please!**


	13. Alpha

**I DO NOT OWN TWILIGHT**

* * *

Mallie worried for the Pack.

It was her family. Her only family beside her snotty uncle from down south who seemed to think she was some sort of uncivilised barbarian and that Old Quil wasn't a suitable guardian.

"For the love of god he taught her to work a BOAT! A young lady working on a boat!"

He pretended to have airs he didn't have or deserve.

Imagine what would happen if he found out she was living with Sam and Emily?

Bedlam. Complete and utter bedlam.

But this Cullen business was tiring her and ripping the pack apart.

And the battle was just approaching.

Jacob sat on the floor after Sam started his formations and Mallie approached him kneeling in front of the wolf and connecting his mind to hers and blocking out the rest.

A new skill she'd picked up by accident.

"I don't wanna do this either buddy." She told him.

"And you know I don't like Bella Swan…Cullen whatever after what she did to you."

He nodded he felt the silent connection the two held sever and he heard Quil ask. "Jake bro. How do you want to roll?" Quil asked before looking at Embry and Mallie. "Jeez will you to turn around while you say goodbye!"

To be honest they weren't doing anything Embry was just telling her she should probably leave soon when Mallie sensed it.

Jacob Black…

She spun and stared at him walk toward Sam and refuse to follow him.

She placed a hand over her mouth in shock and felt something rip inside of her.

"He's gone." Embry stated.

"I can still hear him…" Mallie said frowning.

"It's probably just you." Paul said.

"Seth's gone as well." Jared stated.

Leah was pacing around.

The wolves started to howl in anger.

They growled argued amongst themselves.

The next day Leah was gone.

Embry paced Mallie's bedroom as she read her book. "Go if you want." She told him.

He paused and looked at her. "Really?"

"Sure. It's not exactly going to infect me Embry. I'm the Guardian for Quileute wolves not just the pack but for the wolves themselves. And I want Jacob to know that."

He nodded slowly. "I'm afraid if I did go to Jake that Sam…"

"Would stop you from seeing me like he thought he would do to Quil? No…trust me he wouldn't last a day."

He grinned and sat next to her. "You're very headstrong."

She smiled and stood up. "I know."

~LAPUSHWOLFPACK~

The next time she saw Jacob Black would be when the wolves well Jared, Paul, Quil and Collin would come to see Jacob and his new pack.

Mallie had actually been asked to stay home which had been met with. "Yeah right."

Jacob saw no aggression in there postures in fact Mallie had her headphones around her neck and was chewing gum.

Her chirpy voice echoed in Seth, Leah and Jacob's ears. "Hi guys!"

"You can still hear us?"

"I guess Pack guardian has turned into just Wolf guardian…"

"Huh. Awesome!" Seth grinned.

Jared cleared his throat, and then he nodded to Jacob.

"White flag of truce, Jake. We're here to talk."

Mallie beside him nodded. It made sense but…

Yeah but…but then again if they were going to attack…they wouldn't have brought Mallie and left Embry…

"It would be easier if I could hear you too." Jared said.

Jacob stared him down and Mallie looked around. Okay Wolf girl wasn't going to play translator.

"Okay I guess I'll do the talking then." Jared sighed. "Jake we want you to come back."

Quil whined next to him.

"You've torn our family apart. It's not meant to be this way."

Jake wasn't exactly in disagreement with that, but it was hardly the point.

There were a few unresolved differences of opinion between him and Sam at the moment.  
"We know that you feel... strongly about the situation with the Cullens. We know that's a problem. But this is an overreaction."  
Seth growled. 'Overreaction? And attacking our allies without warning isn't?'  
'Seth, you ever heard of a poker face? Cool it.'  
'Sorry.'  
'Dude you need to work on that man…" Mallie's bored voice said.  
Jared's eyes flickered to Seth and back to Jake.

"Sam is willing to take this slowly, Jacob. He's calmed down, talked to the other Elders. They've decided that immediate action is in no one's best interest at this point."  
'Translation: They've already lost the element of surprise.' Leah thought.  
"You have no idea…try living with Sam and his pacing all last night…" Mallie stated. "The fact that you guys bailed drove him up the walls and down the other side…"  
It was weird how distinct our joint thinking was.

The pack was already Sam's pack, was already "them" to Jake, Seth and Leah.

Something outside and other.

It was especially weird to have Leah thinking that way - to have her be a solid part of the "us."

But for Mallie? It still felt natural to have the girl in their heads…

Guess some things never change.  
"Billy and Sue agree with you, Jacob; that we can wait for Bella... to be separated from the problem. Killing her is not something any of us feel comfortable with."

"Me too." The wolves heard Mallie say… "You know that…"  
Though he'd just given Seth crap for it.

Jake couldn't hold back a small snarl of his own.

So they didn't quite feel comfortable with murder, huh?

"Easy, Jake. You know what I mean. The point is, we're going to wait and reassess the situation. Decide later if there's a problem with the... thing."  
Ha, Leah thought. What a load.  
'You don't buy it?'  
I know what they're thinking, Jake. They're betting on Bella dying anyway. And then they figure you'll be so mad. . .  
'That I'll lead the attack myself.'

His ears pressed against his skull. What Leah was guessing sounded pretty spot-on.

And very possible, too. When... if that thing killed Bella, it was going to be easy to forget how he felt about Carlisle's family right now.

They would probably look like enemies - like no more than bloodsucking leeches - to him all over again.  
I'll remind you, Seth whispered.  
"Know you will, kid. Question is whether I'll listen to you."  
"Jake?" Jared asked.  
He huffed a sigh.  
"Leah, make a circuit - just to be sure. I'm going to have to talk to him, and I want to be positive there isn't anything else going on while I'm phased."  
"Give me a break, Jacob. You can phase in front of me. Despite my best efforts, I've seen you naked before - doesn't do much formed, so no worries."  
"I'm not trying to protect the innocence of your eyes; I'm trying to protect our backs. Get out of here."  
Leah snorted once and then launched herself into the forest.

He could hear her claws cutting into the soil, pushing her faster.  
Nudity was an inconvenient but unavoidable part of pack life.

They'd all thought nothing of it before Leah came along.

Then it got awkward.

Leah had average control when it came to her temper - it took her the usual length of time to stop exploding out of her clothes every time she got pissed.

They'd all caught a glimpse.

And it wasn't like she wasn't worth looking at; it was just that it was so not worth it when she caught you thinking about it later.  
Jared and the others were staring at the place where she'd disappeared into the brush with wary expressions.  
"Where's she going?" Jared asked.  
Jacob ignored him, closing his eyes and pulling himself together again.

He briefly heard an. "Okay…." From Mallie as she blocked her eyes.

"Ew."

It felt like the air was trembling around him, shaking out from him in small waves.

Jacob lifted himself up on his hind legs, catching the moment just right so that he was fully upright as he shimmered down into his human self.  
"Oh," Jared said. "Hey, Jake."  
"Hey, Jared."  
"Hi Jake!" Mallie chirped.

"Short-stack."

"Still calling me that?"

"I'm always going to call you that."

"Nice to know you haven't changed."  
"Thanks for talking to me." Jared said rolling his eyes.  
"Yeah."  
"We want you to come back, man."  
Quil whined again.  
"I don't know if it's that easy, Jared."  
"Come home," He said, leaning forward. Pleading. "We can sort this out. You don't belong here. Let Seth and Leah come home, too."  
Jacob laughed. "Right. Like I haven't been begging them to do that from hour one."  
Seth snorted behind Jacob.  
Jared assessed that, his eyes cautious again. "So, what now, then?"  
Jacob thought that over for a minute while they waited.  
"I don't know. But I'm not sure things could just go back to normal anyway, Jared. I don't know how it works - it doesn't feel like I can just turn this Alpha thing off and on as the mood strikes. It feels sort of permanent."  
"You still belong with us."  
Jacob raised my eyebrows. "Two Alphas can't belong in the same place, Jared. Remember how close it got last night? The instinct is too competitive."

"Jacob…." Mallie's voice sounded. "The Spirits aren't angry with you."

For some reason he felt a weight being lifted off his shoulders….

"Sam is sorry about what he did to you." She stated.

"I'm not angry anymore." Jacob said.

But?"  
"But I'm not coming back, not now. We're going to wait and see how it plays out, too. And we're going to watch out for the Cullens for as long as that seems necessary. Because, despite what you think, this isn't just about Bella. We're protecting those who should be protected. And that applies to the Cullens, too." At least a fair number of them, anyway."  
Seth yelped softly in agreement.  
Jared frowned. "I guess there's nothing I can say to you, then."  
"Not now. We'll see how things go."  
Jared turned to face Seth, concentrating on him now, separate from him.

"Sue asked me to tell you - no, to beg you - to come home. She's broken-hearted, Seth. All alone. I don't know how you and Leah can do this to her. Abandon her this way, when your dad just barely died - "  
Seth whimpered.  
Mallie looked up at Jared in shock. It was clear to Jacob this wasn't apart of the plan….

"Ease up, Jared," He warned.  
"Just letting him know how it is."  
Jake snorted. "Right."

Sue was tougher than anyone he knew.

Tougher than my dad, tougher than Jake.

Tough enough to play on her kids' sympathies if that's what it took to get them home.

But it wasn't fair to work Seth that way.

"Sue's known about this for how many hours now? And most of that time spent with Billy and Old Quil and Sam? Yeah, I'm sure she's just perishing of loneliness. 'Course you're free to go if you want, Seth. You know that."  
Seth sniffed.  
Then, a second later, he cocked an ear to the north.

Leah must be close.

Jeez, she was fast.

Two beats and Leah skidded to a stop in the brush a few yards away.

She trotted in, taking the point in front of Seth.

She kept her nose in the air, very obviously not looking in his direction.  
He appreciated that.  
"Leah?" Jared asked.  
She met his gaze, her muzzle pulling back a little over her teeth.  
Jared didn't seem surprised by her hostility. "Leah, you know you don't want to be here."

She snarled at him.

She looked at Seth then at Jacob.

"I understand you want to look out for Seth, but Jake's not going to let anything happen to him. Anyway please Leah. We want you back. Sam wants you back."

Leah's tail twitched.

"Sam told me to beg. He told me to literally get down on my knees if I have too. He wants you home Lee-lee where you belong."

Leah being Leah started to growl and snarl at him cussing him out and you didn't need the mind link to hear it.

Too bad Mallie had it and the girl flinched.

"I'm gonna go out on a limb here and say that Leah belongs anywhere she wants to be."

Leah growled again this time in agreement.

"Look, Jared, we're still family, okay? We'll get past the feud, but, until we do, you probably ought to stick to your land. Just so there aren't misunderstandings. Nobody wants a family brawl, right? Sam doesn't want that, either, does he?"  
"Of course, not," Jared snapped.

"We'll stick to our land. But where is your land, Jacob? Is it vampire land?"  
"No, Jared. Homeless at the moment. But don't worry - this isn't going to last forever." Jake had to take a breath.

"There's not that much time... left. Okay? Then the Cullens will probably go, and Seth and Leah will come home."  
Leah and Seth whined together, their noses turning his direction in synchronization.  
"And what about you, Jake?"  
"Back to the forest, I think. I can't really stick around La Push. Two Alphas means too much tension. 'Sides, I was headed that way anyway. Before this mess."  
"What if we need to talk?" Jared asked.  
"Howl - but watch the line, okay? We'll come to you. And Sam doesn't need to send so many. We aren't looking for a fight."  
Jared scowled, but nodded. He didn't like him setting conditions for Sam. "See you around, Jake. Or not." He waved half-heartedly.  
"Wait, Jared. Is Embry okay?"

Mallie stilled eyes widening at his question.

Surprise crossed Jared's face. "Embry? Sure, he's fine. Why?"

"Just wondering why Sam sent Collin."  
I watched his reaction, still suspicious that something was going on. I saw knowledge flash in his eyes, but it didn't look like the kind I was expecting.  
"That's not really your business anymore, Jake."  
"Guess not. Just curious."  
He saw a twitch from the corner of his eye, but he didn't acknowledge it, because e didn't want to give Quil away.

He was reacting to the subject.  
"I'll let Sam know about your... instructions. Goodbye, Jacob."  
He sighed. "Yeah. Bye, Jared. Hey, tell my dad that I'm okay, will you? And that I'm sorry, and that I love him."  
"I'll pass that along."  
"Thanks."  
"C'mon, guys," Jared said.

He turned away from us, heading out of sight to phase because Leah was here.

Paul and Collin were right on his heels, but Quil hesitated.

Mallie remained as well.

He yelped softly, and Jake took a step toward him.  
"Yeah, I miss you, too, bro."  
Quil jogged over to me, his head hanging down morosely. I patted his shoulder.  
"It'll be okay."  
He whined.  
"Tell Embry I miss having you two on my flanks."  
He nodded and then pressed his nose to his forehead.

Leah snorted. Quil looked up, but not at her.

He looked back over his shoulder at where the others had gone.  
"Yeah, go home." He told him.  
Quil yelped again and then took off after the others. I'd bet Jared wasn't waiting super-patiently. As soon as he was gone, I pulled the warmth from the centre of my body and let it surge through my limbs. In a flash of heat, I was on four legs again.

Now only Mallie remained. "You know my number if you need to talk to me. And Jacob…..I found out who I am."

He stilled. "You mean…"

"Jacob Black….you and Sam Uley just gained a new cousin." She winked before turning around and running after Jared and the other wolves.

Jacob stared after the small female dumb-struck. He had forgotten asking her to look for who she was….but…

If he and Sam had gained a cousin…

Has Quil gained a brother?

Was Embry an Ateara?

* * *

**Sorry it took so long. Im sick so sorry for any mistakes! **


	14. Ateara

**I do not own Twilight**

* * *

The pack was in uproar.

Or at least what was left of the pack…

"You're a Black?" Sam asked in shock.

Mallie nodded. "And an Uley. Hiya cousin." She stated completely at ease.

"How is that possible?" Emily asked.

"My real grandfather is Levi Uley's brother's son. And my grandmother is Ephraim Black's brother's daughter. They met when they were …well she was sixteen and he was nearly eighteen. And from Jared's vulgar memories of what he does with Kim we all know how a baby is made… they didn't or couldn't raise it so they put it up for adoption and that my friend is how my mother came to be."

"Huh….so what does that make you to Sam and Rachel?" Paul asked.

"And Billy and Jake and Rebecca…." Sue said rolling her eyes.

"No idea. I'm one for family titles. You're my brothers and that's cool for me."

They smiled but Quil broke the silence that fell over them. "That means…"

Everyone looked at him. "That means that Embry is….unless he's your cousin and that would just be creepy on so many levels….he is my…"

No one wanted to say it. No one could say it. It would mean Quil's dad the man whom he'd lost around the same time Mallie lost her parents the man he had idolised for some time….had cheated on his mother to create the boy that would someday become his best friend and mate to the girl who he'd fight against for power if the remote in his granddad's house….

The pack looked from Quil to Embry before Quil stood up. "I uh…need some time…"

He left the house leaving silence in his wake as he went.

Mallie shook her head. "I'll talk to him…."

"You sure?" Sam asked.

Mallie laughed. "No….but I gotta do it any way."

She went after Quil.

And found him on the roof of the shack beside the sea on one of the bigger cliffs over First Beach that his granddad kept most of the tools for the boat in.

"How's the weather up there?" She offered weakly.

"Little chilly…" He replied with forced humour before looking down at her. "Coming up?"

"Yeah, two seconds…"

They sat next to each other in silence. "I can talk to him for you. Find out why he…"

"No." Quil said. "I don't want you to talk to him. I don't want you to listen to his excuses…"

Quil felt her put her head on his shoulder. "You're blaming yourself." She stated.

"How do you know?"

"You came here when you blamed yourself when I fell out of that tree when I was eight and broke my wrist."

"I was told watch you."

"And you did…you watched me fall."

He chuckled but it sounded pained.

"I can't wrap my head around it….Embry is my brother…"

"Is that good or bad?"

He shook his head. "I always considered Embry my brother it's the fact he is actually an Ateara…"

She nodded. "I understand what you mean. But I know Embry and right now he'll be beating himself up thinking he's after losing his beat friend because his paternity has been discovered."

"Advice oh wise one that sucks ass at Maths."

"Do what most brothers I see on TV do throw a few punches; collapse crying and tell each other you love them in a total non-weird way."

Quil laughed. "You're my favourite baby kind of sister."

"I'm your only your baby kind of sister."

~LAPUSHWOLFPACK~

Jacob, Seth and Leah thought about their meeting with Jared, Mallie and the wolves.

"I see why Embry wasn't allowed to come," Seth thought.  
He didn't understand. Not allowed?  
Jake, did ya see Quil? He's pretty torn up, right? I'd put ten to one that Embry's even more upset And Embry doesn't have a Claire."

"He has Mallie…" Jake thought.

"Yeah but Mallie can still talk to us and all that jazz she won't listen to Sam and nothing will stop her from seeing Embry nothing…There's no way Quil can just pick up and walk away from La Push. Embry might especially is Mallie told him it was okay. Her word is stronger then Sam's with him. So Sam's not going to take any chances on him getting convinced to jump ship. He doesn't want our pack any bigger than it is now."  
"Really? You think? I doubt Embry would mind shredding some Cullens."  
"But he's your best friend, Jake. He and Quil would rather stand behind you than face you in a fight."  
"Well, I'm glad Sam kept him home, then. This pack is big enough. And now where Embry goes; so does Mallie if she moved with us completely La Push would fall apart…" He sighed.

Seth agreed. "She's sort of the heart of the place…"

"Okay, then. So we're good, for now. Seth, you mind keeping an eye on things for a while? Leah and I both need to crash. This felt on the level, but who knows? Maybe it was a distraction."  
Jacob wasn't always so paranoid, but he remembered the feel of Sam's commitment.

The total one-track focus on destroying the danger he saw.

Would he take advantage of the fact that he could lie to them now?  
"No problem!"

Seth was only too eager to do whatever he could.

"You want me to explain to the Cullens? They're probably still kinda tense."  
"I got it. I want to check things out anyway."  
They caught the whir of images from his fried brain.  
Seth whimpered in surprise. "Ew."  
Leah whipped her head back and forth like she was trying to shake the image out of her mind.

"That is easily the freaking grossest thing I've heard in my life. Yuck. If there was anything in my stomach, it would be coming back."  
"They are vampires, I guess." Seth allowed after a minute, compensating for Leah's reaction.

"Mean, it makes sense. And if it helps Bella, it's a good thing, right?"  
Both Leah and Jacob stared at him.  
"What?"  
"Mom dropped him a lot when he was a baby." Leah told Jake.  
"On his head, apparently."  
"He used to gnaw on the crib bars, too."  
"Lead paint?"  
"Looks like it." She thought.  
Seth snorted. "Funny. Why don't you two shut up and sleep?"

~LAPUSHWOLFPACK~

Quil and Mallie entered the still crowded kitchen silently carrying what looked like chips and burgers from the local diner.

"Well what are you staring at? Come and get it!" Quil told them.

The pack grinned and bounded toward the food but Embry hung back but found his favourite being held out to him.

Looking up he found the warm eyes of Quil looking at him.

Slowly he took it from his hand and took Quil's hand giving him the one armed hug deemed the 'bro-shake.'

A smiling Mallie appeared beside him and he wrapped an arm around her.

This was family. This was home.

All they were missing was the newly formed 'Black Pack.'

* * *

**Bit of a filler chapter really if I don't update in a while it's because EXAMS ARE A BITCH!**


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